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BOOK    574.942.W583    v.  2    c.2 
WHITE    #    NATURAL    HISTORY    OF 
SELBORNE    AND    OBSERVATIONS    ON 


3    Tli53    00m03fiT    0 


7-1 


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114 


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THE  NATURAL  HISTORY  OF  SELBORNE 

VOL.   II 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2009  with  funding  from 

Boston  Library  Consortium  IVIember  Libraries 


http://www.archive.org/details/naturalhistoryof02whit 


spring  in  a  Selborne  garden. 


Natural  History 
pr  Selbornc  & 
Observations  on 

byGILBERJRMIIITE 


r 


WITH  THE  TEXT 
'AND  NEW  LETTERS 
OFTHEBUCKLAND 
^EDITION 


V 


Introduction  by^ 
JOHN  Burroughs 
Illustrations 
BY  Clifton 
Johnson 


NEW 


% 


D. 


YORK 
APPLETON  &  CO. 

189^ 


^H^l^ 


Copyright,  1895, 
By  D.  APPLETON   AND  COMPANY. 


1^0  "ii 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 

VOL.    II. 


PAGE 

Spring  in  a  Selborne  garden      .....  Frontispiece 

A  Selborne  stile vi 

House-swallows .         .  2 

Selborne  cottages 9 

Sand  martins     ...........  14 

A  nightingale 21 

A  weasel  .         .         .         .         .         .•;....         .         .         .         .22 

Redbreasts .         .         -24 

Swifts 31 

A  look  across  the  Plestor. Facing  37 

Magpies  and  their  nest      .........  43 

Gypsies  in  front  of  "  The  Wakes  "    .  .         .         .         .         .         .54 

A  rush-light 56 

Catching  bees .         .61 

A  pond  on  Selborne  hill Facing  68 

A  walk  in  the  vicar's  garden •.       Facing  80 

An  old  hop-kiln         ..........  92 

Old  beehives     .         .        ' Facing  95 

A  village  lane  ...........  102 

A  jackdaw         ...........  107 

Skylarks 108 

Sparrow  hawks          .                  114 

Plowing  under  the  Hanger        . 127 

A  successor  to  White's  tortoise  in  the  garden  at  "  The  Wakes  "       .  137 

Burning  an  old  hedge  under  the  Hanger.         .         .         .       Facing  141 

A  jay 142 

A  modern  observer  of  nature Facing  154 

V 


PAGE 

A  peregrine  falcon .  165 

Selborne  down Facing  171 

The  tower  of  Selborne  church  .         . 174 

The  weather 183 

The  vicarage  at  Newton  Valence 188 

Selborne  church  seen  from  the  fields 214 


'v?; 


rt 


A    Selborne  stile. 


THE 
NATURAL  HISTORY  OF  SELBORNE. 


LETTER    LVII. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

The  house-swallow,"^  or  chimney-swallow,  is  un- 
doubtedly the  first  comer  of  all  the  British  Jiirun- 
dines ;  and  appears  in  general  on  or  about  the  13th  of 
April,  as  I  have  remarked  from  many  years'  observa- 
tion. Not  but  now  and  then  a  straggler  is  seen  much 
earlier :  and,  in  particular,  when  I  was  a  boy  I  ob- 
served a  swallow  for  a  whole  day  together  on  a 
sunny  warm  Shrove  Tuesday  ;  which  day  could  not 
fall  out  later  than  the  middle  of  March,  and  often 
happened  early  in  February. 

It  is  worth  remarking  that  these  birds  are  seen 
first  about  lakes  and  mill-ponds  ;  and  it  is  also  very 
particular,  that  if  these  early  visitors  happen  to  find 
frost  and  snow,  as  was  the  case  in  the  two  dreadful 
springs  of  1770  and  1771,  they  immediately  with- 
draw for  a  time.  A  circumstance  this  much  more  in 
favour  of  hiding  than   migration  ;   since   it  is   much 

*  Chimney-Swallow,  HiJ'undo  ritstica,  LiniiEeus. 

I 


more  probable  that  a  bird  should  retire  to  its  hyber- 
naculum  just  at  hand,  than  return  for  a  week  or  two 
only  to  warmer  latitudes. 

The  swallow,  though  called  the  chimney-swallow^ 
by  no  means  builds  altogether  in  chimneys,  but  often 


u 


House-s7vallows. 


within  barns  and  out-houses,  against  the  rafters ;  and 
so  she  did  in  Virgil's  time: — '' Garrula  quam  tignis 
nidos  suspendat  hirundo."  ''  The  twittering  swallow 
hangs  its  nest  from  the  beams." 


In  Sweden  she  builds  in  barns,  and  is  called  Ladu 
swala,  the  barn-swallow.  Besides,  in  the  warmer 
parts  of  Europe  there  are  no  chimneys  to  houses, 
except  they  are  English  built :  in  these  countries  she 
constructs  her  nest  in  porches,  and  gateways,  and 
galleries,  and  open  halls. 

Here  and  there  a  bird  may  affect  some  odd, 
peculiar  place  ;  as  we  have  known  a  swallow  build 
down  a  shaft  of  an  old  well,  through  which  chalk 
had  been  formerly  drawn  up  for  the  purpose  of 
manure  :  but  in  general  with  us  this  hiriindo  breeds 
in  chimneys ;  and  loves  to  haunt  those  stacks  where 
there  is  a  constant  fire,  no  doubt  for  the  sake  of 
warmth.  Not  that  it  can  subsist  in  the  immediate 
shaft  where  there  is  a  fire  ;  but  prefers  one  adjoining 
to  that  of  the  kitchen,  and  disregards  the  perpetual 
smoke  of  that  funnel,  as  I  have  often  observed  with 
some  degree  of  wonder. 

Five  or  six  or  more  feet  down  the  chimney  does 
this  little  bird  begin  to  form  her  nest,  about  the  mid- 
dle of  May,  which  consists,  like  that  of  the  house- 
martin,  of  a  crust  or  shell  composed  of  dirt  or  mud, 
mixed  with  short  pieces  of  straw  to  render  it  tough 
and  permanent :  with  this  difference,  that  whereas 
the  shell  of  the  martin  is  nearly  hemispheric,  that  of 
the  swallow  is  open  at  the  top,  and  like  half  a  deep 
dish  :  this  nest  is  lined  with  fine  grasses,  and  feathers 
which  are  often  collected  as  they  float  in  the  air. 

Wonderful  is  the  address  which  this  adroit  bird 

3 


shows  all  day  long-  in  ascending  and  descending 
with  security  through  so  narrow  a  pass.  When  hov- 
ering over  the  mouth  of  the  funnel,  the  vibration  of 
her  wings  acting  on  the  confined  air  occasions  a  rum- 
bling like  thunder.  It  is  not  improbable  that  the 
dam  submits  to  this  inconvenient  situation  so  low  in 
the  shaft,  in  order  to  secure  her  broods  from  rapa- 
cious birds,  and  particularly  from  owls,  which  fre- 
quently fall  down  chimneys,  perhaps  in  attempting 
to  get  at  these  nestlings. 

The  swallow  lays  from  four  to  six  white  eggs, 
dotted  with  red  specks  ;  and  brings  out  her  first 
brood  about  the  last  week  in  June,  or  the  first  week 
in  July.  The  progressive  method  by  which  the 
young  are  introduced  into  life  is  very  amusing:  first, 
they  emerge  from  the  shaft  with  difficulty  enough, 
and  often  fall  down  into  the  rooms  below  ;  for  a  day 
or  so  they  are  fed  on  the  chimney-top,  and  then  are 
conducted  to  the  dead  leafless  bough  of  some  tree, 
where  sitting  in  a  row  they  are  attended  with  great 
assiduity,  and  may  then  be  called  perchers.  In  a 
day  or  two  more  they  become  flyers,  but  are  still 
unable  to  take  their  own  food  ;  therefore  they  play 
about  near  the  place  where  the  dams  are  hawking 
for  flies  ;  and  when  a  mouthful  is  collected,  at  a  cer- 
tain signal  given  the  dam  and  the  nestling  advance, 
rising  towards  each  other,  and  meeting  at  an  angle ; 
the  young  one  all  the  while  uttering  such  a  little 
quick  note  of  gratitude  and  complacency,  that  a  per- 


son  must  have  paid  very  little  regard  to  the  wonders 
of  nature  that  has  not  often  remarked  this  feat. 

The  dam  betakes  herself  immediately  to  the  busi- 
ness of  a  second  brood  as  soon  as  she  is  disengaged 
from  her  first ;  which  at  once  associates  with  the 
first  broods  of  house-martins  ;  and  with  them  con- 
gregates, clustering  on  sunny  roofs,  towers,  and 
trees.  This  hirundo  brings  out  her  second  brood 
towards  the  middle  and  end  of  August. 

All  the  summer  long  the  swallow  is  a  most  in- 
structive pattern  of  unwearied  industry  and  affec- 
tion ;  for  from  morning  to  night,  while  there  is  a 
family  to  be  supported,  she  spends  the  whole  day  in 
skimming  close  to  the  ground,  and  exerting  the  most 
sudden  turns  and  quick  evolutions.  Avenues,  and 
long  walks  under  hedges,  and  pasture-fields,  and 
mown  meadows  where  cattle  graze,  are  her  delight, 
especially  if  there  are  trees  interspersed  ;  because 
in  such  spots  insects  most  abound.  When  a  fly  is 
taken,  a  smart  snap  from  her  bill  is  heard,  resem- 
bling the  noise  at  the  shutting  of  a  watch-case ;  but 
the  motion  of  the  mandibles  is  too  quick  for  the  eye. 

The  swallow,  probably  the  male  bird,  is  the 
excubitor  to  house-martins,  and  other  little  birds, 
announcing  the  approach  of  birds  of  prey.  For  as 
soon  as  a  hawk  appears,  with  a  shrill  alarming  note 
he  calls  all  the  swallows  and  martins  about  him  ; 
who  pursue  in  a  body,  and  buffet  and  strike  their 
enemy  till   they   have  driven   him  from  the  village, 

5 


darting"  down  from  above  on  his  back,  and  rising-  in 
a  perpendicular  line  in  perfect  security.  This  bird 
will  also  sound  the  alarm  and  strike  at  cats  when 
they  climb  on  the  roofs  of  houses,  or  otherwise 
approach  the  nest.  Each  species  of  Jiirundo  drinks 
as  it  flies  along,  sipping  the  surface  of  the  water ; 
but  the  swallow  alone,  in  general,  washes  on  the 
wing,  by  dropping  into  a  pool  for  many  times 
together:"^  in  very  hot  weather  house-martins  and 
bank-martins  also  dip  and  wash  a  little. 

The  swallow  is  a  delicate  songster,  and  in  soft 
sunny  weather  sings  both  perching  and  flying ;  on 
trees  in  a  kind  of  concert,  and  on  chimney-tops :  it  is 
also  a  bold  flyer,  ranging  to  distant  downs  and  com- 
mons even  in  windy  weather,  which  the  other  spe- 
cies seem  much  to  dislike ;  nay,  even  frequenting 
exposed  sea-port  towns  and  making  little  excursions 
over  the  salt  water.  Horsemen  on  wide  downs  are 
often  closely  attended  by  a  little  party  of  swallows 
for  miles  together,  which  plays  before  and  behind 
them,  sweeping  around  and  collecting  all  the  skulk- 
ing insects  that  are  roused  by  the  trampling  of  the 
horses'  feet :  when  the  wind  blows  hard,  without  this 
expedient,  they  are  often  forced  to  settle  to  pick  up 
their  lurking  prey. 


'  Now  suddenly  he  skims  the  glassy  pool, 
Now  quaintly  dips,  and  with  an  arrow's  speed 
V\^hisks  by.     I  love  to  lie  awake,  and  hear 
His  morning  song  twittered  to  dawning  day." 
6 


This  species  feeds  much  on  little  coleoptera,  as 
well  as  on  gnats  and  flies;  and  often  settles  on  dug 
ground,  or  paths,  for  gravels  to  grind  and  digest  its 
food.  Before  they  depart,  for  some  weeks  they  for- 
sake houses  and  chimneys  to  a  bird,  and  roost  in 
trees ;  and  usually  withdraw  about  the  beginning  of 
October;  though  some  few  stragglers  may  appear 
at  times  till  the  first  week  in  November. 

[September  13,  1791.  The  congregating  flocks  of 
hirundines  on  the  church  and  tower  are  very  beau- 
tiful and  amusing !  When  they  fly  off  together  from 
the  roof,  on  any  alarm,  they  quite  swarm  in  the  air. 
But  they  soon  settle  in  heaps,  and  preening  their 
feathers,  and  lifting  up  their  wings  to  admit  the  sun, 
seem  highly  to  enjoy  the  warm  situation.  Thus 
they  spend  the  heat  of  the  day,  preparing  for  their 
emigration,  and,  as  it  were,  consulting  when  and 
where  they  are  to  go.  The  flight  about  the  church 
seems  to  consist  chiefly  of  house-martins,  about  400 
in  number ;  but  there  are  other  places  of  rendezvous 
about  the  village  frequented  at  the  same  time."^ 

It  is  remarkable,  that  though  most  of  them  sit  on 


*  Of  their  migration  the  proofs  are  such  as  will  scarcely  admit  of  a 
doubt.  Sir  Charles  Wager  and  Captain  Wright  saw  vast  flocks  of  them 
at  sea,  when  on  their  passage  from  one  country  to  another.  Our  author, 
Mr.  White,  saw  what  he  deemed  the  actual  migration  of  these  birds 
which  he  has  described  at  p.  6g,  and  again  in  the  above  extract  ;  and  I 
once  observed  a  large  flock  of  house-martins  myself  on  the  roof  of  the 
church  here  at  Catsfield,  which  acted  exactly  in  the  manner  here  described 
by  Mr.  White,  sometimes  preening  their  feathers  and   spreading  their 

7 


the  battlements  and  roof,  yet  many  hang  or  cling 
for  some  time  by  their  claws  against  the  surface  of 
the  walls,  in  a  manner  not  practised  by  them  at  any 
other  time  of  their  remaining  with  us. 

The  swallows  seem  to  delight  more  in  holding 
their  assemblies  on  trees. 

November  3,  1789.  Two  swallows  were  seen 
this  morning  at  Newton  vicarage-house  hovering 
and  settling  on  the  roofs  and  out-buildings.  None 
have  been  observed  at  Selborne  since  October  11. 
It  is  very  remarkable,  that  after  the  Jiiriindines  have 
disappeared  for  some  weeks,  a  few  are  occasionally 
seen  again :  sometimes  in  the  first  week  in  Novem- 
ber, and  that  only  for  one  day.  Do  they  not  with- 
draw and  slumber  in  some  hiding  place  during  the 
interval  ?  for  we  cannot  suppose  they  had  migrated 
to  warmer  climes,  and  so  returned  again  for  one  da}^ 
Is  it  not  more  probable  that  they  are  awakened  from 
sleep,  and  like  the  bats  are  come  forth  to  collect  a 
little  food  ?  Bats  appear  at  all  seasons  through  the 
autumn  and  spring  months,  when  the  thermometer  is 
at  50°,  because  then  pJialcBuce  and  moths  are  stirring. 

These  swallows  looked  like  young  ones.] — Ob- 
servations ON  Nature. 

Some  few  pairs  haunt  the  new  and  open  streets 
of  London,  next  the  fields,  but  do  not  enter,  like  the 

wings  to  the  sun,  and  then  flying  off"  all  together,  but  soon  returning  to 
their  former  situation.  The  greatest  part  of  these  birds  seemed  to  be 
young  ones. — Markwick. 


house-martin,  the    close    and  crowded    parts  of  the 
city. 

Both  male  and  female  are  distinguished  from 
their  congeners  by  the  length  and  forkedness  of 
their  tails.  They  are  undoubtedly  the  most  nimble 
of  all  the  species  ;  and  when  the  male  pursues  the 
female  in  amorous  chase,  they  then  go  beyond  their 
usual  speed,  and  exert  a  rapidity  almost  too  quick 
for  the  eye  to  follow. 


Selborne  cottas:es. 


After  this   circumstantial    detail    of    the    life  and 

discerning  arop^rj  of  the   swallow,   I    shall   add,  for 

your  further    amusement,  an  anecdote  or    two  not 

much  in  favour  of  their  sagacity. 
i8  9 


A  certain  swallow  built  for  two  years  together 
on  the  handles  of  a  pair  of  garden  shears  that  were 
stuck  up  against  the  boards  in  an  out-house,  and 
therefore  must  have  her  nest  spoiled  whenever  that 
implement  was  wanted:  and,  what  is  stranger  still, 
another  bird  of  the  same  species  built  its  nest  on 
the  wings  and  body  of  an  owl  that  happened  by 
accident  to  hang  dead  and  dry  from  the  rafter  of  a 
barn.  This  owl,  with  the  nest  on  its  wings,  and  with 
eggs  in  the  nest,  was  brought  as  a  curiosity  worthy 
the  most  elegant  private  museum  in  Great  Britain. 
The  owner,  struck  with  the  oddit}^  of  the  sight, 
furnished  the  bringer  with  a  large  shell,  or  conch, 
desiring  him  to  fix  it  just  where  the  owl  hung:  the 
person  did  as  he  was  ordered,  and  the  following  year 
a  pair,  probably  the  same  pair,  built  their  nest  in  the 
conch,  and  laid  their  eggs. 

The  owl  and  the  conch  make  a  strange  grotesque 
appearance,  and  are  not  the  least  curious  specimens 
in  that  wonderful  collection  of  art  and  nature. 

Thus  is  instinct  in  animals,  taken  the  least  out  of 
its  way,  an  undistinguishing,  limited  faculty;  and 
blind  to  every  circumstance  that  does  not  immedi- 
ately respect  self-preservation,  or  lead  at  once  to  the 
propagation  or  support  of  their  species. 
Selborne,  Sept.  9,  1767. 


10 


LETTER    LVIII. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

I  RECEIVED  your  favour  of  the  8th,  and  am 
pleased  to  find  that  you  read  my  little  history  of 
the  swallow  with  your  usual  candour :  nor  was  I 
the  less  pleased  to  find  that  you  made  objections 
where  you  saw  reason. 

As  to  the  quotations,  it  is  difficult  to  say  pre- 
cisely which  species  of  hirundo  Virgil  might  in- 
tend in  the  lines  in  question,  since  the  ancients  did 
not  attend  to  specific  differences  like  modern  natu- 
ralists ;  yet  somewhat  may  be  gathered,  enough  to 
incline  me  to  suppose  that  in  the  two  passages 
quoted  the  poet  had  his  eye  on  the  swallow. 

In  the  first  place  the  epithet  garriila  suits  the 
swallow  well,  which  is  a  great  songster ;  and  not  the 
martin,  which  is  rather  a  mute  bird  ;  and  when  it 
sings  is  so  inward  as  scarce  to  be  heard.  Besides, 
if  tigmini  in  that  place  signifies  a  rafter  rather  than  a 
beam,  as  it  seems  to  me  to  do,  then  it  must  be  the 
swallow  that  is  alluded  to,  and  not  the  martin  ;  since 
the  former  does  frequently  build  within  the  roof 
against  the  rafters ;  while  the  latter  always,  as  far  as 
I  have  been  able  to  observe,  builds  without  the  roof 
against  eaves  and  cornices. 

As  to  the  simile,  too  much  stress  must  not  be 
laid  on  it;    yet  the  epithet  nigra  speaks  plainly  in 


favour  of  the  swallow,  whose  back  and  wings  are 
very  black  ;  while  the  rump  of  the  martin  is  milk- 
white,  its  back  and  wings  blue,  and  all  its  under  part 
white  as  snow.  Nor  can  the  clumsy  motions  (com- 
paratively clumsy)  of  the  martin  well  represent  the 
sudden  and  artful  evolutions  and  quick  turns  which 
Juturna  gave  to  her  brother's  chariot,  so  as  to  elude 
the  eager  pursuit  of  the  enraged  ^neas.  The  verb 
sonat  also  seems  to  imply  a  bird  that  is  somewhat 
loquacious.* 

We  have  had  a  very  wet  autumn  and  winter,  so 
as  to  raise  the  springs  to  a  pitch  beyond  anything 
since  1764;  which  was  a  remarkable  year  for  floods 
and  high  waters.  The  land-springs,  which  we  call 
levants,  break  out  much  on  the  downs  of  Sussex, 
Hampshire,  and  Wiltshire.  The  country  people  say 
when  the  levants  rise  corn  will  always  be  dear; 
meaning  that  when  the  earth  is  so  glutted  with 
water  as  to  send  forth  springs  on  the  downs  and 
uplands,  the  corn-vales  must  be  drowned  ;  and  so  it 
has  proved  for  these  ten  or  eleven  years  past.     For 


*  "  As  when  the  black  swallow  flies  through  the  great  palace  of  some 
wealthy  lord,  sweeping  with  its  wings  through  the  lofty  halls,  picking  up 
tiny  scraps  of  food  for  its  chirping  nestlings,  at  one  time  twittering  in 
the  empty  porches,  and  at  another  round  the  watery  ponds." 

"  Nigra  velut  magnas  domini  cum  divitis  aedes 
Pervolat,  et  pennis  alta  atria  lustrat  hirundo, 
Pabula  parva  legens,  nidisque  loquacibus  escas  : 
Et  nunc  porticibus  vacuis,  nunc  humida  circum 
Stagnat  sonat."— (ViRG.  ^n.  xii.  473-477-) 

12 


land-springs  have  never  obtained  more  in  the  mem- 
ory of  man  than  during  that  period  ;  nor  has  there 
been  known  a  greater  scarcity  of  all  sorts  of  grain, 
considering  the  great  improvements  of  modern  hus- 
bandry. Such  a  run  of  wet  seasons  a  century  or  two 
ago  would,  I  am  persuaded,  have  occasioned  a  fam- 
ine, therefore  pamphlets  and  newspaper  letters,  that 
talk  of  combinations,  tend  to  inflame  and  mislead  ; 
since  we  must  not  expect  plenty  till  Providence 
sends  us  more  favourable  seasons. 

The  wheat  of  last  year,  all  round  this  district,  and 
in  the  county  of  Rutland  and  elsewhere,  yields  re- 
markably bad  :  and  our  wheat  on  the  ground,  by  the 
continual  late  sudden  vicissitudes  from  fierce  frost  to 
pouring  rains,  looks  poorly  ;  and  the  turnips  rot  very 
fast. 

Selborne,  Feb.  14,  1774. 


LETTER    LIX. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

The  sand-martin,  or  bank-martin  {^Hirundo  riparia, 
Linnseus),  is  by  much  the  least  of  any  of  the  British 
hiriindines ;  and,  as  far  as  we  have  ever  seen,  the 
smallest  known  Jiiriindo  :  though  Brisson  asserts  that 
there  is  one  much  smaller,  and  that  is  the  Hiriindo 
esculenta. 

13 


But  it  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  it  is  scarce 
possible  for  any  observer  to  be  so  full  and  exact  as 
he  could  wish  in  reciting  the  circumstances  attend- 
ing the  life  and  conversation  of  this  little  bird,  since 
it  is  fera  7iaturd,  at  least  in  this  part  of  the  kingdom, 
disclaiminof  all  domestic  attachments,  and   haunting 


Sand-martins. 


wild   heaths    and   commons   where    there    are   large 
lakes  ;  while  the  other  species,  especially  the  swallow 

14 


and  house-martin,  are  remarkably  gentle  and  domes- 
ticated, and  never  seem  to  think  themselves  safe  but 
under  the  protection  of  man. 

Here  are  in  this  parish,  in  the  sand-pits  and  banks 
of  the  lakes  of  Wolmer  Forest,  several  colonies  of 
these  birds ;  and  yet  they  are  never  seen  in  the  vil- 
lage ;  nor  do  they  at  all  frequent  the  cottages  that 
are  scattered  about  in  that  wild  district.  The  only 
instance  I  ever  remember  where  this  species  haunts 
any  building  is  at  the  town  of  Bishop's  Waltham,  in 
this  county,  where  many  sand-martins  nestle  and 
breed  in  the  scaffold  holes  of  the  back- wall  of  William 
of  Wykeham's  stables:  but  then  this  wall  stands  in 
a  very  sequestered  and  retired  inclosure,  and  faces 
upon  a  large  and  beautiful  lake.  Indeed  this  species 
seems  so  to  delight  in  large  waters,  that  no  instance 
occurs  of  their  abounding  but  near  vast  pools  or 
rivers:  and  in  particular  it  has  been  remarked  that 
they  swarm  in  the  banks  of  the  Thames  in  some 
places  below  London  bridge. 

It  is  curious  to  observe  with  what  different  de- 
grees of  architectonic  skill  Providence  has  endowed 
birds  of  the  same  genus,  and  so  nearly  correspondent 
in  their  general  mode  of  life  !  ^     For  while  the  swal- 


*  "  Each  creature  hath  a  wisdom  of  its  own  ; 

The  pigeons  feed  their  tender  offspring,  crying, 
When  they  are  callow,  but  withdraw  their  food 
When  they  are  fledged,  that  they  may  teach  them  flying." 

Herbert. 
15 


low  and  the  house-martin  discover  the  greatest  ad- 
dress in  raising  and  securely  fixing  crusts  or  shells 
of  loam  as  cunabula  for  their  young,  the  bank-martin 
terebrates  a  round  and  regular  hole  in  the  sand  or 
earth,  which  is  serpentine,  horizontal,  and  about  two 
feet  deep.  At  the  inner  end  of  this  burrow  does  this 
bird  deposit,  in  a  good  degree  of  safety,  her  rude 
nest,  consisting  of  fine  grasses  and  feathers,  usually 
goose-feathers,  very  inartificially  laid  together. 

Perseverance  will  accomplish  anything :  though 
at  first  one  would  be  disinclined  to  believe  that  this 
weak  bird,  with  her  soft  and  tender  bill  and  claws, 
should  ever  be  able  to  bore  the  stubborn  sand-bank 
without  entirely  disabling  herself ;  yet  with  these 
feeble  instruments  have  I  seen  a  pair  of  them  make 
great  despatch  :  and  could  remark  how  much  they 
had  scooped  that  day  by  the  fresh  sand  which  ran 
down  the  bank,  and  was  of  a  different  colour  from 
that  which  lay  loose  and  bleached  in  the  sun. 

In  what  space  of  time  these  little  artists  are  able 
to  mine  and  finish  these  cavities  I  have  never  been 
able  to  discover,  for  reasons  given  above  ;  but  it 
would  be  a  matter  worthy  of  observation,  where  it 
falls  in  the  way  of  any  naturalist  to  make  his  remarks. 
This  I  have  often  taken  notice  of,  that  several  holes 
of  different  depths  are  left  unfinished  at  the  end  of 
summer.  To  imagine  that  these  beginnings  were 
intentionally  made  in  order  to  be  in  the  greater  for- 
wardness for  next    spring  is    allowing   perhaps   too 

i6 


much  foresight  and  rerum  priidentia  to  a  simple 
bird.  May  not  the  cause  of  these  latebrce  being  left 
unfinished  arise  from  their  meeting  in  those  places 
with  strata  too  harsh,  hard,  and  solid  for  their  pur- 
pose, which  they  relinquish,  and  go  to  a  fresh  spot 
that  works  more  freely  ?  Or  may  they  not  in  other 
places  fall  in  with  a  soil  as  much  too  loose  and 
mouldering,  liable  to  founder,  and  threatening  to 
overwhelm  them  and  their  labours? 

One  thing  is  remarkable — that,  after  some  years, 
the  old  holes  are  forsaken  and  new  ones  bored  ;  per- 
haps because  the  old  habitations  grow  foul  and  fetid 
from  long  use,  or  because  they  may  so  abound  with 
fleas  as  to  become  untenantable.  This  species  of 
swallow  moreover  is  strangely  annoyed  with  fleas : 
and  we  have  seen  fleas,  bed-fleas  {Pulex  irritans), 
swarming  at  the  mouths  of  these  holes,  like  bees  on 
the  stools  of  their  hives. 

The  following  circumstance  should  by  no  means 
be  omitted — that  these  birds  do  not  make  use  of 
their  caverns  by  way  of  hybernacula,  as  might  be 
expected;  since  banks  so  perforated  have  been  dug 
out  with  care  in  the  winter,  when  nothing  was  found 
but  empty  nests. 

The  sand-martin  arrives  much  about  the  same 
time  with  the  swallow,  and  lays,  as  she  does,  from 
four  to  six  white  eggs.  But  as  this  species  is  crypto- 
game,  carrying  on  the  business  of  nidification,  incu- 
bation, and  the  support  of  its  young  in  the  dark,  it 

17 


would  not  be  so  easy  to  ascertain  the  time  of  breed- 
ing, were  it  not  for  the  coming  forth  of  the  broods, 
which  appear  much  about  the  time,  or  rather  some- 
what earlier  than  those  of  the  swallow.  The  nest- 
lings are  supported  in  common  like  those  of  their 
congeners,  with  gnats  and  other  small  insects;  and 
sometimes  they  are  fed  with  libellulce  (dragon-fiies) 
almost  as  long  as  themselves.  In  the  last  week  in 
June  we  have  seen  a  row  of  these  sitting  on  a  rail 
near  a  great  pool  as  perchers ;  and  so  young  and 
helpless,  as  easily  to  be  taken  by  hand  :  but  whether 
the  dams  ever  feed  them  on  the  wing,  as  swallows 
and  house-martins  do,  we  have  never  yet  been  able 
to  determine :  nor  do  we  know  whether  they  pursue 
and  attack  birds  of  prey. 

When  they  happen  to  breed  near  hedges  and  in- 
closures,  they  are  frequently  dispossessed  of  their 
breeding  holes  by  the  house-sparrow,  which  is  on 
the  same  account  a  fell  adversary  to  house-martins. 

These  hirundines  are  no  songsters,  but  rather 
mute,  making  only  a  little  harsh  noise  when  a  person 
approaches  their  nests.  They  seem  not  to  be  of  a 
sociable  turn,  never  with  us  congregating  with  their 
congeners  in  the  autumn.  Undoubtedly  they  breed 
a  second  time,  like  the  house-martin  and  swallow,  and 
withdraw  about  Michaelmas. 

Though   in    some   particular   districts    they   may 

happen  to  abound,  yet  in  the  whole,  in  the  south  of 

England    at  least,  is  this    much    the  rarest   species. 

i8 


For  there  are  few  towns  or  large  villages  but  what 
abound  with  house-martins  ;  few  churches,  towers, 
or  steeples,  but  what  are  haunted  by  some  swifts  : 
scarce  a  hamlet  or  a  single  cottage-chimney  that  has 
not  its  swallow ;  while  the  bank-martins,  scattered 
here  and  there,  live  a  sequestered  life  among  some 
abrupt  sand-hills,  and  in  the  precipitous  banks  of 
some  few  rivers. 

These  birds  have  a  peculiar  manner  of  fiying : 
flitting  about  with  odd  jerks,  and  vacillations,  not 
unlike  the  motions  of  a  butterfly.  Doubtless  the 
flight  of  all  hiriindines  is  influenced  by,  and  adapted 
to,  the  peculiar  sort  of  insects  which  furnish  their 
food.  Hence  it  would  be  worth  inquiry  to  examine 
what  particular  genus  of  insects  affords  the  principal 
food  of  each  respective  species  of  swallow. 

Notwithstanding  what  has  been  advanced  above, 
some  few  sand-martins,  I  see,  haunt  the  skirts  of  Lon- 
don, frequenting  the  dirty  pools  in  Saint  George's 
Fields,  and  about  Whitechapel.  The  question  is 
where  these  build,  since  there  are  no  banks  or  bold 
shores  in  that  neighbourhood  :  perhaps  they  nestle 
in  the  scaffold  holes  of  some  old  or  new  deserted 
building.  They  dip  and  wash  as  they  fly  sometimes, 
like  the  house-martin  and  swallow. 

Sand-martins  differ  from  their  congeners  in  the 
diminutiveness  of  their  size,  and  in  their  colour, 
which  is  what  is  usually  called  a  mouse-colour. 
Near  Valencia  in  Spain,  they  are   taken,  says  Wil- 

19 


lughby,  and  sold  in  the  markets  for  the  table;  and 
are  called  by  the  country  people,  probably  from 
their  desultory  jerking  manner  of  flight,  Papilion  de 
Moiitagna, 

SelboRxXE,  Feb.  26,  1774. 


LETTER    LX. 
To  Thomas  Pennant,  Esq. 

Before  your  letter  arrived,  and  of  my  own  ac- 
cord, I  have  been  remarking  and  comparing  the  tails 
of  the  male  and  female  swallow,  and  this  ere  any 
young  birds  appeared  ;  so  that  there  is  no  danger 
of  confounding  the  dams  with  their  pidli :  and  be- 
sides, as  they  were  then  always  in  pairs,  and  busied 
in  the  employ  of  nidification,  there  could  be  no  room 
for  mistaking  the  sexes,  nor  the  individuals  of  differ- 
ent chimneys  the  one  for  the  other.  From  all  my 
observations,  it  constantly  appeared  that  each  sex 
has  the  long  feathers  in  its  tail  that  give  it  that 
forked  shape ;  with  this  difference,  that  they  are 
longer  in  the  tail  of  the  male  than  in  that  of  the 
female. 

Nightingales,  when  their  young  first  come 
abroad,  and  are  helpless,  make  a  plaintive  and  a 
jarring    noise  ;    and    also    a    snapping    or    cracking, 

pursuing   people    along    the    hedges   as  they   walk : 

20 


these  last    sounds  seem    intended    for    menace    and 
defiance. 

The  grass- 
hopper -  lark 
chirps  all  night 
in  the  height 
of  summer. 

Swans  turn 
white  the  sec- 
ond year,  and 
breed  the  third. 
Weasels  prey 
on  moles,  as  ap- 
pears by  their 
being  some- 
times caught  in  A  nightingale. 

mole-traps. 

Sparrow-hawks  sometimes  breed  in  old  crows' 
nests,  and  the  kestril  in  churches  and  ruins. 

There  are  supposed  to  be  two  sorts  of  eels  in  the 
island  of  Ely.  The  threads  sometimes  discovered  in 
eels  are  perhaps  their  young :  the  generation  of  eels 
is  very  dark  and  mysterious. 

Hen-harriers  breed  on  the  ground,  and  seem 
never  to  settle  on  trees. 

[Of  this  bold  bird  White  afterwards  writes  in  his 
"  Observations  :  " — ''A  gentleman  flushed  a  pheasant 
in  a  wheat  stubble,  and  shot  at  it ;  when,  notwith- 
standing the  report  of  the  gun,  it  was  immediately 

21 


pursued  by  the  blue  hawk  known  by  the  name  of  the 
hen-harrier,  but  escaped  into  some  covert.     He  then 
sprung    a  second    and    a    third    in   the 
same    field,    that  got  away    in   the 
same  manner ;    the  hawk   hover- 
ing round  him  all  the  while  that 
he    was    beating    the    field,   con- 
scious no  doubt  of  the  game  that 
lurked  in    the   stubble.      Hence 
we  may  conclude  that  this  bird 
of   prey   was    rendered   very  dar- 
ing and  bold  by  hunger,  and  that 
hawks  cannot  always  seize  their 
game  when  they  please.    We  may 
farther   observe,   that  they  cannot 
pounce    on    their    quarry    on    the 
ground,   where   it   might   be   able    to    make   a  stout 
resistance,  since  so  large  a  fowl  as  a  pheasant  could 
not  but  be  visible  to  the    piercing  eye   of  a  hawk, 
when  hovering  over   the  field.     Hence  that  propen- 
sity of  cowering  and  squatting  till  they  are  almost 
trod  on,  which  no  doubt  was  intended  as  a  mode  of 
security  ;    though   long  rendered   destructive  to  the 
whole  race  of  Gallince  by  the  invention  of  nets  and 
guns.] 

When  redstarts  shake  their  tails  they  move  them 
horizontally,  as  dogs  do  when  they  fawn :  the  tail  of 
a  wagtail,  when  in  motion,  bobs  up  and  down  like 
that  of  a  jaded  horse. 


A   weasel. 


22 


Hedge-sparrows  have  a  remarkable  flirt  with 
their  wings  in  breeding-time ;  as  soon  as  frosty 
mornings  come  they  make  a  very  piping  plaintive 
noise, 

Many  birds  which  become  silent  about  Midsum- 
mer reassume  their  notes  again  in  September  ;  as  the 
thrush,  blackbird,  woodlark,  willow-wren,  &c. ;  hence 
August  is  by  much  the  most  mute  month,  the  spring, 
summer,  and  autumn  through.  Are  birds  induced 
to  sing  again  because  the  temperament  of  autumn 
resembles  that  of  spring? 

Linnasus  ranges  plants  geographically  :  palms  in- 
habit the  tropics,  grasses  the  temperate  zones,  and 
mosses  and  lichens  the  polar  circles  ;  no  doubt  ani- 
mals may  be  classed  in  the  same  manner  with  pro- 
priety. 

House-sparrows  build  under  eaves  in  the  spring ; 
as  the  weather  becomes  hotter  they  get  out  for 
coolness,  and  nest  in  plum-trees  and  apple-trees. 
These  birds  have  been  known  sometimes  to  build 
in  rooks'  nests,  and  sometimes  in  the  forks  of  boughs 
under  rooks'  nests. 

As  my  neighbour  was  housing  a  rick  he  observed 
that  his  dogs  devoured  all  the  little  red  mice  that 
they  could  catch,  but  rejected  the  common  mice  ; 
and  that  his  cats  ate  the  common  mice,  refusing 
the  red. 

Redbreasts  sing  all  through  the  spring,  summer, 
and   autumn.     The   reason   that  they  are   called   au- 

23 


tumn  songsters  is,  because  in  the   first  two  seasons 
their    voices  are   drowned   and  lost    in  the  general 

chorus ;  in  the 
latter  their  song 
becomes  distin- 
guishable. Many 
songsters  of  the 
autumn  seem  to 
be  the  young 
cock  redbreasts 
of  that  year : 
notwithstanding 
the  prejudices 
in  their  favour, 
they  do  much 
mischief  in  gar- 
dens to  the  sum- 
mer-fruits. They 
eat  also  the  ber- 
ries of  the  ivy,  the  honeysuckle,  and  the  Euonynms 
EuropcEus,  or  spindle-tree. 

The  titmouse,  which  early  in  February  begins  to 
make  two  quaint  notes  like  the  whetting  of  a  saw,  is 
the  marsh  titmouse  ;  the  great  titmouse  sings  with 
three  cheerful  joyous  notes,  and  begins  about  the 
same  time. 

Wrens  sing  all  the  winter  through,  frost  ex- 
cepted. 

House-martins    came    remarkably   late   this   year 
24 


Redbreasts. 


both  in  Hampshire  and  Devonshire.  Is  this  cir- 
cumstance for  or  against  either  hiding  or  migration  ? 

Most  birds  drink  sipping  at  intervals,  but  pigeons 
take  a  long  continued  draught,  like  quadrupeds. 

Notwithstanding  what  1  have  said  in  a  former 
letter,  no  grey  crows  were  ever  known  to  breed  on 
Dartmoor :  it  was  my  mistake. 

The  appearance  and  flying  of  the  ScarabcEus  solsti- 
tialis,  or  fern  chafer,  commence  with  the  month  of 
July,  and  cease  about  the  end  of  it.  These  scarabs 
are  the  constant  food  of  caprinndgi,  or  fern-owls, 
through  that  period.  They  abound  on  the  chalky 
downs,  and  in  some  sandy  districts,  but  not  in  the 
clays. 

In  the  garden  of  the  Black-Bear  Inn  in  the  town 
of  Reading  is  a  stream  or  canal  running  under  the 
stables  and  out  into  the  fields  on  the  other  side  of 
the  road :  in  this  water  are  many  carps,  which  lie 
rolling  about  in  sight,  being  fed  by  travellers,  who 
amuse  themselves  by  tossing  them  bread ;  but  as 
soon  as  the  weather  grows  at  all  severe  these  fishes 
are  no  longer  seen,  because  they  retire  under  the 
stables,  where  they  remain  till  the  return  of  spring. 
Do  they  lie  in  a  torpid  state  ?  If  they  do  not,  how 
are  they  supported  ? 

The  note  of  the  whitethroat,  which  is  continually 

repeated,  and  often  attended  with  odd  gesticulations 

on  the  wing,  is  harsh  and  displeasing.     These  birds 

seem  of  a  pugnacious  disposition ;  for  they  sing  with 

19  25 


an  erected  crest  and  attitudes  of  rivalry  and  defi- 
ance ;  are  shy  and  wild  in  breeding-time,  avoiding 
neighbourhoods,  and  haunting  lonely  lanes  and  com- 
mons ;  nay,  even  the  very  tops  of  the  Sussex  downs, 
where  there  are  bushes  and  covert ;  but  in  July 
and  August  they  bring  their  broods  into  gardens 
and  orchards,  and  make  great  havoc  among  the 
summer  fruits. 

The  blackcap  has  in  common  a  full,  sweet,  deep, 
loud,  and  wild  pipe ;  yet  that  strain  is  of  short  con- 
tinuance, and  his  motions  are  desultory  ;  but  when 
that  bird  sits  calmly  and  engages  in  song  in  earnest, 
he  pours  forth  very  sweet,  but  inward  melody,  and 
expresses  great  variety  of  soft  and  gentle  modula- 
tions, superior  perhaps  to  those  of  any  of  our  war- 
blers, the  nightingale  excepted.  Blackcaps  mostly 
haunt  orchards  and  gardens ;  while  they  warble, 
their  throats  are  wonderfully  distended. 

The  song  of  the  redstart  is  superior,  though 
somewhat  like  that  of  the  whitethroat :  some  birds 
have  a  few  more  notes  than  others.  Sitting  ver}^ 
placidly  on  the  top  of  a  tall  tree  in  a  village,  the 
cock  sings  from  morning  till  night :  he  affects  neigh- 
bourhoods, and  avoids  solitude,  and  loves  to  build 
in  orchards  and  about  houses ;  with  us  he  perches 
on  tlie  vane  of  a  tall  maypole. 

The   flycatcher  is  of    all  our  summer  birds   the 

most  mute  and   the  most  familiar  ;    it  also  appears 

the  last  of  any.     It  builds  in  a  vine,  or  a  sweetbriar, 

26 


against  the  wall  of  a  house,  or  in  the  hole  of  a  wall, 
or  on  the  end  of  a  beam  or  plate,  and  often  close  to 
the  post  of  a  door  where  people  are  going  in  and  out 
all  day  long.  This  bird  does  not  make  the  least 
pretension  to  song,  but  uses  a  little  inward  wailing 
note  when  it  thinks  its  young  in  danger  from  cats 
or  other  annoyances :  it  breeds  but  once,  and  retires 
early. 

Selborne  parish  alone  can  and  has  exhibited  at 
times  more  than  half  the  birds  that  are  ever  seen 
in  all  Sweden ;  the  former  has  produced  more  than 
one  hundred  and  twenty  species,  the  latter  only  two 
hundred  and  twenty-one.  Let  me  add  also,  that  it 
has  shown  near  half  the  species  that  were  ever  known 
in  Great  Britain  ;  Sweden  having  two  hundred  and 
twenty-one.  Great  Britain  two  hundred  and  fifty-two 
species. 

On  a  retrospect,  I  observe  that  my  long  letter 
carries  with  it  a  quaint  and  magisterial  air,  and  is 
very  sententious ;  but  when  I  recollect  that  you  re- 
quested stricture  and  anecdote,  I  hope  you  will  par- 
don the  didactic  manner  for  the  sake  of  the  informa- 
tion it  may  happen  to  contain. 

Selborne,  Sept.  2,  1774. 


27 


LETTER  LXI. 

To  Thomas  Pennant,  Esq. 

It  is  matter  of  curious  inquiry  to  trace  out  how 
those  species  of  soft-billed  birds,  that  continue  with 
us  the  winter  through,  subsist  during  the  dead 
months.  The  imbecility  of  birds  seems  not  to  be  the 
only  reason  why  they  shun  the  rigour  of  our  win- 
ters;  for  the  robust  wryneck"^  (so  much  resembling 
the  hardy  race  of  woodpeckers)  migrates,  while  the 
feeble  little  golden-crowned  wren,  that  shadow  of 
a  bird,  braves  our  severest  frosts  without  availing 
himself  of  houses  or  villages,  to  which  most  of  our 
winter-birds  crowd  in  distressful  seasons,  while  this 
keeps  aloof  in  fields  and  woods ;  but  perhaps  this 
may  be  the  reason  why  they  may  often  perish, 
and  why  they  are  almost  as  rare  as  any  bird  we 
know. 

I  have  no  reason  to  doubt  but  that  the  soft-billed 
birds,  which  winter  with  us,  subsist  chiefly  on  in- 
sects in  their  aurelia  state.  All  the  species  of  wag- 
tails in  severe  weather  haunt  shallow  streams  near 
their  spring  heads,  where  they  never  freeze ;  and,  by 


*  "  Wrynecks  appear  on  the  grass-plots  and  walks ;  they  walk  a 
little  as  well  as  hop,  and  thrust  their  bills  into  the  turf,  in  quest,  I 
conclude,  of  ants,  which  are  their  food.  While  they  hold  their  bills  in 
the  grass,  they  draw  out  their  prey  with  their  tongues,  which  are  so 
long  as  to  be  coiled  round  their  heads,"  says  White  in  his  "  Obser- 
vations." 

28 


wading,  pick  out  the  aurelias  of  the  genus  of  PJiry- 
ganecB,  &c.^ 

Hedge-sparrows  frequent  sinks  and  gutters  in 
hard  weather,  where  they  pick  up  crumbs  and  other 
sweepings :  and  in  mild  weather  they  procure  worms, 
which  are  stirring  every  month  in  the  year,  as  any 
one  may  see  that  will  only  be  at  the  trouble  of  taking 
a  candle  to  a  grass-plot  on  any  mild  winter's  night. 
Redbre.asts  and  wrens  in  the  winter  haunt  out-houses, 
stables,  and  barns,  where  they  find  spiders  and  flies 
that  have  laid  themselves  up  during  the  cold  season. 
But  the  grand  support  of  the  soft-billed  birds  in  win- 
ter is  that  infinite  profusion  of  aurelice  of  the  Lepidop- 
tera  ordo,  which  is  fastened  to  the  twigs  of  trees  and 
their  trunks,  to  the  pales  and  walls  of  gardens  and 
buildings,  and  is  found  in  every  cranny  and  cleft  of 
rock  or  rubbish,  and  even  in  the  ground  itself. 

Every  species  of  titmouse  winters  with  us  ;  they 
have  what  I  call  a  kind  of  intermediate  bill  between 
the  hard  and  the  soft,  between  the  Linnsean  genera 
of  Fringilla  and  Motacilla.  One  species  alone  spends 
its  whole  time  in  the  woods  and  fields,  never  retreat- 
ing for  succour,  in  the  severest  seasons,  to  houses 
and  neighbourhoods  ;  and  that  is  the  delicate  long- 
tailed  titmouse,  which  is  almost  as  minute  as  the 
golden-crowned  wren :  but  the  blue  titmouse,  or  nun 
{Parus  cceriileus),  the  cole-mouse  {Par us  ater),  the  great 


Derham's  "  Physico  Theology." 
29 


black-headed  titmouse  {Pants  fringillago,  now  major), 
and  the  marsh  titmouse  iParus  palustris),  all  resort, 
at  times,  to  buildings ;  and  in  hard  weather  par- 
ticularly. The  great  titmouse,  driven  by  stress  of 
weather,  much  frequents  houses,  and,  in  deep  snows, 
I  have  seen  this  bird,  while  it  hung  with  its  back 
downwards  (to  my  no  small  delight  and  admira- 
tion), draw  straws  lengthwise  from  out  the  eaves  of 
thatched  houses,  in  order  to  pull  out  the  fiies  that 
were  concealed  between  them,  and  that  in  such  num- 
bers that  they  quite  defaced  the  thatch,  and  gave  it 
a  ragged  appearance. 

The  blue  titmouse,  or  nun,  is  a  great  frequenter 
of  houses,  and  a  general  devourer.  Besides  insects, 
it  is  very  fond  of  flesh  ;  for  it  frequently  picks  bones 
on  dunghills :  it  is  a  vast  admirer  of  suet,  and  haunts 
butchers'  shops.  When  a  boy,  I  have  known  twenty 
in  a  morning  caught  with  snap  mouse-traps,  baited 
with  tallow  or  suet.  It  will  also  pick  holes  in  apples 
left  on  the  ground,  and  will  be  well  entertained  with 
the  seeds  on  the  head  of  a  sunflower.  The  blue, 
marsh,  and  great  titmice  will,  in  very  severe  weather, 
carry  away  barley  and  oat  straws  from  the  sides  of 
ricks. 

How  the  wheatear  and  whinchat  support  them- 
selves in  winter  cannot  be  so  easily  ascertained,  since 
they  spend  their  time  on  wild  heaths  and  warrens  ; 
the  former  especially,  where  there  are  stone  quar- 
ries :    most    probably    it   is    that   their   maintenance 

30 


arises  from  the  aurelice  of  the  Lepidoptera  ordo,  which 
furnish  them  with  a  plentiful  table  in  the  wilderness. 


.     LETTER    LXII. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

As  the  swift  or  black  martin  is  the  largest  of  the 
British  hirundines,  so  is  it  undoubtedly  the  latest 
comer.     For  1  remember  but  one  instance  of  its  ap- 


iiiiii jwiiiimwi' 


Swifts. 

pearing  before  the  last  week  in  April ;  and  in  some 
of  our  late  frosty,  harsh  springs,  it  has  not  been  seen 
till  the  beginning  of  May.  This  species  usually  ar- 
rives in  pairs. 

31 


The  swift,  like  the  sand-martin,  is  very  defective 
in  architecture,  making  no  crust,  or  shell,  for  its 
nest;  but  forming  it  of  dry  grasses  and  feathers, 
very  rudely  and  inartificially  put  together.  With 
all  my  attention  to  these  birds,  I  have  never  been 
able  once  to  discover  one  in  the  act  of  collecting  or 
carrying  in  materials  :  so  that  I  have  suspected  (since 
their  nests  are  exactly  the  same)  that  they  sometimes 
usurp  upon  the  house-sparrows,  and  expel  them,  as 
sparrows  do  the  house  and  sand-martin ;  well  re- 
membering that  I  have  seen  them  squabbling  to- 
gether at  the  entrance  of  their  holes  ;  and  the  spar- 
rows up  in  arms,  and  much  disconcerted  at  these 
intruders.  And  yet  I  am  assured  by  a  nice  observer 
in  such  matters,  that  they  do  collect  feathers  for 
their  nests  in  Andalusia  ;  and  that  he  has  shot  them 
with  such  materials  in  their  mouths. 

Swifts,  like  sand-martins,  carry  on  the  business  of 
nidification  quite  in  the  dark,  in  crannies  of  castles, 
and  towers,  and  steeples,  and  upon  the  tops  of  the 
walls  of  churches  under  the  roof ;  and  therefore  can- 
not be  so  narrowly  watched  as  those  species  that 
build  more  openly  ;  but,  from  what  I  could  ever 
observe,  they  begin  nesting  about  the  middle  of 
May  ;  and  I  have  remarked,  from  eggs  taken,  that 
they  have  sat  hard  by  the  9th  of  June.  In  general 
they  haunt  tall  buildings,  churches,  and  steeples,  and 
breed  only  in  such  :  yet  in  this  village  some  pairs 
frequent  the  lowest  and  meanest  cottages,  and  edu- 

32 


cate  their  young  under  those  thatched  roofs.  I  re- 
member but  one  instance  where  they  bred  out  of 
buildings  ;  and  that  was  in  the  sides  of  a  deep  chalk- 
pit near  the  town  of  Odiham,  in  this  county,  where 
I  have  seen  many  pairs  entering  the  crevices,  and 
skimming  and  squeaking  round  the  precipices. 

As  I  have  regarded  these  amusive  birds  with  no 
small  attention,  if  I  should  advance  something  new 
and  peculiar  with  respect  to  them,  and  different  from 
all  other  birds,  I  might  perhaps  be  credited  ;  espe- 
cially as  my  assertion  is  the  result  of  many  years' 
exact  observation.  The  fact  that  I  would  advance 
is,  that  swifts  propagate  on  the  wing  :  and  I  would 
wish  any  nice  observer,  that  is  startled  at  this  sup- 
position, to  use  his  own  eyes,  and  I  think  he  will 
soon  be  convinced.  In  another  class  of  animals,  viz. 
the  insect,  nothing  is  so  common  as  to  see  the  differ- 
ent species  of  many  genera  in  conjunction  as  they 
fly.  The  swift  is  almost  continually  on  the  wing  ; 
and  as  it  never  settles  on  the  ground,  on  trees,  or 
roofs,  would  seldom  find  opportunity  for  amorous 
rites,  was  it  not  enabled  to  indulge  them  in  the  air. 
If  any  person  would  watch  these  birds  of  a  fine 
morning  in  May,  as  they  are  sailing  round,  at  a  great 
height  from  the  ground,  he  would  see,  every  now 
and  then,  one  drop  on  the  back  of  another,  and  both 
of  them  sink  down  together  for  many  fathoms  with  a 
loud  piercing  shriek.     This  I  take  to  be  the  juncture 

when  the  business  of  generation  is  carrying  on. 

33 


As  the  swift  eats,  drinks,  collects  materials  for  its 
nest,  and,  as  it  seems,  propagates  on  the  wing,  it  ap- 
pears to  live  more  in  the  air  than  any  other  bird,  and 
to  perform  all  functions  there  save  those  of  sleeping 
and  incubation. 

This  Jiirundo  differs  widely  from  its  congeners  in 
laying  invariably  but  two  eggs  at  a  time,  which  are 
milk-white,  long,  and  peaked  at  the  small  end  ; 
whereas  the  other  species  lay  at  each  brood  from 
four  to  six.  It  is  a  most  alert  bird,  rising  very  early 
and  retiring  to  roost  very  late  ;  and  is  on  the  wing 
in  the  height  of  summer  at  least  sixteen  hours.  In 
the  longest  days  it  does  not  withdraw  to  rest  till  a 
quarter  before  nine  in  the  evening,  being  the  latest 
of  all  day  birds.  Just  before  they  retire  whole 
groups  of  them  assemble  high  in  the  air,  and  squeak, 
and  shoot  about  with  wonderful  rapidity.  But  this 
bird  is  never  so  much  alive  as  in  sultry  thundery 
weather,  when  it  expresses  great  alacrity,  and  calls 
forth  all  its  powers.  In  hot  mornings,  several,  get- 
ting together  in  little  parties,  dash  round  the  steeples 
and  churches,  squeaking  as  they  go  in  a  very  clam- 
orous manner:  these,  by  nice  observers,  are  sup- 
posed to  be  males  serenading  their  sitting  hens  ;  and 
not  without  reason,  since  they  seldom  squeak  till 
they  come  close  to  the  walls  or  eaves,  and  since 
those  within  utter  at  the  same  time  a  little  inward 
note  of  complacency. 

When  the  hen  has  sat  hard  all  day,  she  rushes 

34 


forth  for  a  few  minutes,  just  as  it  is  almost  dark,  to 
stretch  and  relieve  her  weary  limbs,  and  snatch  a 
scanty  meal,  and  then  returns  to  her  duty  of  incuba- 
tion. Swifts,  when  wantonly  and  cruelly  shot  while 
they  have  young,  discover  a  lump  of  insects  in  their 
mouths,  which  they  pouch  and  hold  under  their 
tongue.  In  general  they  feed  in  a  much  higher  dis- 
trict than  the  other  species ;  a  proof  that  gnats  and 
other  insects  do  also  abound  to  a  considerable  height 
in  the  air :  they  also  range  to  vast  distances ;  since 
locomotion  is  no  labour  to  them,  who  are  endowed 
with  such  wonderful  powers  of  wing.  Their  powers 
seem  to  be  in  proportion  to  their  levers  ;  and  their 
wings  are  longer  in  proportion  than  those  of  al- 
most any  other  bird.  When  they  mute,  or  ease 
themselves  in  flight,  they  raise  their  wings,  and 
make  them  meet  over  their  backs. 

At  some  certain  times  in  the  summer  I  had  re- 
marked that  swifts  were  hawking  very  low  for  hours 
together  over  pools  and  streams  ;  and  could  not  help 
inquiring  into  the  object  of  the  pursuit  that  induced 
them  to  descend  so  much  below  their  usual  range. 
After  some  trouble  I  found  that  they  were  taking 
phryganece,  ephemerce  and  libel  hi  Ice  (caddis-flies,  ma)^- 
flies,  and  dragon-flies)  that  were  just  emerged  from 
their  aurelia  state.  I  then  no  longer  wondered  that 
they  should  be  so  willing  to  stoop  for  a  prey  that 
afforded  them  such  plentiful  and  succulent  nourish- 
ment. 

35 


Thev  bring  out  their  young  about  the  middle 
or  latter  end  of  July  :  but  as  these  never  become 
perchers,  nor,  that  ever  I  could  discern,  are  fed  on 
the  wing  bv  their  dams,  the  coming  forth  of  the 
young  is  not  so  notorious  as  in  the  other  species. 

On  the  30th  of  last  June  I  untiled  the  eaves  of  a 
house  where  many  pairs  build,  and  found  in  each 
nest  onlv  two  squabs,  naked //////;  on  the  8th  of  July 
I  repeated  the  same  inquiry,  and  found  the}'  had 
made  verv  little  progress  towards  a  fledged  state, 
but  were  still  naked  and  helpless.  From  whence  we 
may  conclude  that  birds  whose  way  of  life  keeps 
them  perpetually  on  the  wing  would  not  be  able  to 
quit  their  nest  till  the  end  of  the  month.  Swallows 
and  martins,  that  have  numerous  families,  are  con- 
tinuallv  feeding  them  every  two  or  three  minutes; 
while  swifts,  that  have  but  two  young  to  maintain, 
are  much  at  their  leisure,  and  do  not  attend  on  their 
nests  for  hours  together. 

Sometimes  thev  pursue  and  strike  at  hawks  that 
come  in  their  wav  ;  but  not  with  that  vehemence 
and  fury  that  swallows  express  on  the  same  occa- 
sion. Thev  are  out  all  day  long  in  wet  days,  feed- 
ing about,  and  disregarding  still  rain  :  from  whence 
two  things  may  be  gathered  :  first,  that  many  insects 
abide  hisfh  in  the  air,  even  in  rain :  and  next,  that 
the  feathers  of  these  birds  must  be  well  preened 
to  resist  so  much  wet.  Windy,  and  particularly 
windy  weather    with    heavy  showers,   they  dislike; 

36 


and  on   such    days   withdraw,  and   are    scarce   ever 
seen. 

There  is  a  circumstance  respecting  the  colour  of 
swifts  which  seems  not  to  be  unworthy  of  our  atten- 
tion. When  they  arrive  in  the  spring  they  are  all 
over  of  a  glossy,  dark,  soot-colour,  except  their 
chins,  which  are  white;  but,  by  being  all  day  long  in 
the  sun  and  air,  they  become  quite  weather-beaten 
and  bleached  before  they  depart,  and  yet  they  re- 
turn glossy  again  in  the  spring.  Now,  if  they  pur- 
sue the  sun  into  lower  latitudes,  as  some  suppose,  in 
order  to  enjoy  a  perpetual  summer,  why  do  they 
not  return  bleached  ?  Do  they  not  rather  perhaps 
retire  to  rest  for  a  season,  and  at  that  juncture  moult 
and  change  their  feathers,  since  all  other  birds  are 
known  to  moult  soon  after  the  season  of  breeding? 

Swifts  are  very  anomalous  in  many  particulars, 
dissenting  from  all  their  congeners  not  only  in  the 
number  of  their  young,  but  in  breeding  but  once  in 
a  summer ;  whereas  all  the  other  British  hirundines 
breed  invariably  twice.  It  is  past  all  doubt  that 
swifts  can  breed  but  once,  since  they  withdraw  in  a 
short  time  after  the  flight  of  their  young,  and  some 
time  before  their  congeners  bring  out  their  second 
broods.  We  may  here  remark,  that,  as  swifts  breed 
but  once  in  a  summer,  and  only  two  at  a  time,  and 
the  other  hirundines  twice,  the  latter,  who  lay  from 
four  to  six  eggs,  increase  at  an  average  five  times 
as  fast  as  the  former. 

37 


But  in  nothing  are  swifts  more  singular  than  in 
their  early  retreat.  They  retire,  as  to  the  main  body 
of  them,  by  the  loth  of  August,  and  sometimes  a 
few  days  sooner :  and  every  straggler  invariably 
withdraws  by  the  20th,  while  their  congeners,  all  of 
them,  stay  till  the  beginning  of  October ;  many  of 
them  all  through  that  month,  and  some  occasionally 
to  the  beginning  of  November.  This  early  retreat 
is  mysterious  and  wonderful,  since  that  time  is  often 
the  sweetest  season  in  the  year.  But,  what  is  more 
extraordinary,  they  begin  to  retire  still  earlier  in  the 
most  southerly  parts  of  Andalusia,  where  they  can 
be  no  ways  influenced  by  any  defect  of  heat ;  or,  as 
one  might  suppose,  defect  of  food.  Are  they  regu- 
lated in  their  motions  with  us  by  a  failure  of  food, 
or  by  a  propensity  to  moulting,  or  by  a  disposition 
to  rest  after  so  rapid  a  life,  or  by  what?  This  is  one 
of  those  incidents  in  natural  history  that  not  only 
baffles  our  searches,  but  almost  eludes  our  guesses ! 

These  Jiinindines  never  perch  on  trees  or  roofs, 
and  so  never  congregate  with  their  congeners. 
They  are  fearless  while  haunting  their  nesting-places, 
and  are  not  to  be  scared  by  a  gun  ;  and  are  often 
beaten  down  with  poles  and  cudgels  as  they  stoop  to 
go  under  the  eaves.  Swifts  are  much  infested  with 
those  pests  to  the  genus  called  Jiippoboscce  {Anapcrce 
hirtindinis,  Leach),  and  often  wriggle  and  scratch 
themselves,  in  their  flight,  to  get  rid  of  that  cling- 
ing annoyance. 

38 


Swifts  are  no  songsters,  and  have  only  one  harsh 
screaming  note  ;  yet  there  are  ears  to  which  it  is 
not  displeasing,  from  an  agreeable  association  of 
ideas,  since  that  note  never  occurs  but  in  the  most 
lovely  summer  weather. 

They  never  settle  on  the  ground  but  through 
accident ;  and  when  down  can  hardly  rise,  on  ac- 
count of  the  shortness  of  their  legs  and  the  length 
of  their  wings :  neither  can  they  walk,  but  only 
crawl ;  but  they  have  a  strong  grasp  with  their 
feet,  by  which  they  cling  to  walls.  Their  bodies 
being  flat,  they  can  enter  a  very  narrow  crevice ; 
and  when  the}^  cannot  pass  on  their  bellies  they  will 
turn  up  edgewise. 

The  particular  formation  of  the  foot  discrimi- 
nates the  swift  from  all  the  British  hirundines ;  and 
indeed  from  all  other  known  birds,  the  Hiritndo 
ineiba,  or  great  white-bellied  swift  of  Gibraltar,  ex- 
cepted ;  for  it  is  so  disposed  as  to  carry  ''omncs 
quatuor  digitos  anticos " — "  all  its  four  toes  for- 
ward ; "  besides,  the  least  toe,  which  should  be  the 
back  one,  consists  of  one  bone  only,  and  the  other 
three  of  only  two  apiece:  a  construction  most  rare 
and  peculiar,  but  nicely  adapted  to  the  purposes  in 
which  their  feet  are  employed.  This,  and  some 
peculiarities  attending  the  nostrils  and  under  mandi- 
ble, have  induced  a  discerning  naturalist  to  suppose 
that  this  species  might  constitute  a  genus  by  itself. 

In  London  a  party  of  swifts  frequent  the  Tower, 
20  39 


playing  and  feeding  over  the  river  just  below  the 
bridge :  others  haunt  some  of  the  churches  of  the 
Borough  next  the  fields ;  but  do  not  venture,  like 
the  house-martin,  into  the  close,  crowded  part  of 
the  town. 

The  Swedes  have  bestowed  a  very  pertinent 
name  on  this  swallow,  calling  it  ''  ring  swala,"  from 
the  perpetual  rings  or  circles  that  it  takes  round  the 
scene  of  its  nidification. 

Swifts  feed  on  coleoptera,  or  small  beetles  with 
hard  cases  over  their  wings,  as  well  as  on  the  softer 
insects ;  but  it  does  not  appear  how  they  can  pro- 
cure gravel  to  grind  their  food,  as  swallows  do, 
since  they  never  settle  on  the  ground.  Young  ones, 
overrun  with  hippoboscce,  are  sometimes  found  under 
their  nests,  fallen  to  the  ground  ;  the  number  of 
vermin  rendering  their  abode  insupportable  any 
longer.  They  frequent  in  this  village  several  abject 
cottages  ;  yet  a  succession  still  haunts  the  same  un- 
likely roofs :  a  good  proof  this  that  the  same  birds 
return  to  the  same  spots.  As  they  must  stoop  very 
low  to  get  up  under  these  humble  eaves,  cats  lie  in 
wait,  and  sometimes  catch  them  on  the  wing. 

On  the  5th  of  July,  1775,  I  again  untiled  a  part 

of  a  roof  over  the   nest  of  a  swift.     The  dam  sat  in 

the  nest;    but  so  strongly   was  she  affected  by  her 

natural  crrop'yr}  for  her  brood,  which  she  supposed  to 

be  in  danger,  that,  regardless  of  her  own  safety,  she 

would  not  stir,  but  lay  sullenly  by  them,  permitting 

40 


herself  to  be  taken  in  hand.  The  squab  young  we 
brought  down  and  placed  on  the  grass-plot,  where 
they  tumbled  about,  and  were  as  helpless  as  a  new- 
born child.  While  we  contemplated  their  naked 
bodies,  their  unwieldy  disproportioned  abdomina, 
and  their  heads  too  heavy  for  their  necks  to  support, 
we  could  not  but  wonder  when  we  reflected  that 
these  shiftless  beings  in  little  more  than  a  fortnight 
would  be  able  to  dash  through  the  air  almost  with 
the  inconceivable  swiftness  of  a  meteor  ;  and  per- 
haps, in  their  emigration,  must  traverse  vast  conti- 
nents and  oceans  as  distant  as  the  equator.  So 
soon  does  Nature  advance  small  birds  to  their 
rjXiKLa,  or  state  of  perfection  ;  while  the  progressive 
growth  of  men  and  large  quadrupeds  is  slow  and 
tedious ! 

Selborne,  Sept.  28,  1774. 


LETTER  LXIII. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

By  means  of  the  straight  cottage-chimney  I  had 
an  opportunity  this  summer  of  remarking  at  my 
leisure  how  swallows  ascend  and  descend  throug-h 
the  shaft;  but  my  pleasure  in  contemplating  the 
address  with  which  this  feat  is  performed  to  a  con- 
siderable depth  in  the  chimney  was  somewhat  inter- 

41 


rupted  by  apprehensions  lest  my  eyes  might  undergo 
the  same  fate  with  those  of  Tobit. 

Perhaps  it  may  be  some  amusement  to  you  to 
hear  at  what  times  the  different  species  of  Jiirundines 
arrived  this  spring  in  three  very  distant  counties  of 
this  kingdom.  With  us  the  swallow  was  seen  first 
on  April  the  4th,  the  swift  on  April  the  24th,  the 
bank-martin  on  April  the  12th,  and  the  house-martin 
not  till  April  the  30th.  At  South  Zele,  Devonshire, 
swallows  did  not  arrive  till  April  the  25th  ;  swifts, 
in  plenty,  on  May  the  ist,  and  house-martins  not  till 
the  middle  of  May.  At  Blackburn,  in  Lancashire, 
swifts  were  seen  on  April  the  28th,  swallows  April 
the  29th,  house-martins  May  the  ist.  Do  these  dif- 
ferent dates  in  such  distant  districts  prove  anything 
for  or  against  migration? 

A  farmer  near  Weyhill  fallows  his  land  with  two 
teams  of  asses ;  one  of  which  works  till  noon,  and 
the  other  in  the  afternoon.  When  these  animals 
have  done  their  work,  they  are  penned  all  night,  like 
sheep,  on  the  fallow.  In  the  winter  they  are  confined 
and  foddered  in  a  yard,  and  make  plenty  of  dung. 

Linnaeus  says  that   hawks   *'  make    a    truce   with 

other  birds  as  long  as  the  cuckoo  is  heard  :  "  ''  pacis- 

cuntur  inducias  cum   avibus,  quamdiu  cuculus  cucu- 

lat:  "  but  it  appears  to  me  that,  during  that  period, 

many  little  birds  are   taken  and   destroyed  by  birds 

of  prey,  as  may  be  seen  by  the  feathers  left  in  lanes 

and  under  hedges. 

42 


The  missel-thrush  is,  while  breeding,  fierce  and 
pugnacious,  driving  such  birds  as  approach  its  nest 
with  great  fury  to  a  distance.  The  Welsh  call  it 
"  pen  y  llwynn,"  the  head  or  master  of  the  coppice. 
He  suffers  no  magpie,  jay,  or  blackbird  to  enter  the 


Magpies  and  their  nest. 

garden  where  he  haunts  ;  and  is,  for  the  time,  a  good 
guard  to  the  new-sown  legumens.  In  general  he  is 
very  successful  in  the  defence  of  his  family  ;  but  once 

43 


I  observed  in  my  garden,  that  several  magpies  came 
determined  to  storm  the  nest  of  a  missel-thrush  : 
the  dams  defended  their  mansion  with  great  vigour, 
and  fought  resolutely  for  "  their  faith  and  for  their 
homes :"  pro  a?'ts  et  focis ;  but  numbers  at  last  pre- 
vailed, they  tore  the  nest  to  pieces,  and  swallowed 
the  young  alive. 

[Thrushes  during  long  droughts  are  of  great  serv- 
ice in  hunting  out  shell-snails,^  which  they  pull  in 
pieces  for  their  young,  and  are  thereby  very  service- 
able in  gardens.  Missel-thrushes  do  not  destroy  the 
fruit  in  gardens  like  the  other  species  of  tiirdi,  but 
feed  on  the  berries  and  mistletoe,  and  in  the  spring 
on  ivy-berries,  which  then  begin  to  ripen. f  In  the 
summer,  when  their  young  become  fledged,  they 
leave  neighbourhoods,  and  retire  to  sheep-walks  and 
wild  commons.  This  species  of  thrush,  though  wild 
at  other  times,  delights  to  build  near  houses,  and  in 
frequented  walks  and  gardens.] 

*  Of  the  truth  of  this  I  have  been  an  eye-witness,  having  seen  the 
common  thrush  feeding  on  the  shell-snail. — Markwick. 

f  In  the  very  early  part  of  this  spring  (1797)  a  bird  of  this  species 
used  to  sit  every  morning  on  the  top  of  some  very  high  elms  close  by 
my  windows,  and  delight  me  with  its  charming  song,  attracted  thither, 
probably,  by  some  ripe  ivy-berries  that  grew  near  the  place. 

I  have  remarked  something  like  the  latter  fact,  for  I  remember 
many  years  ago,  seeing  a  pair  of  these  birds  fly  up  repeatedly  and 
attack  some  larger  bird,  which  I  supposed  disturbed  their  nest  in  my 
orchard,  uttering  at  the  same  time  violent  shrieks.  Since  writing  the 
above,  I  have  seen  more  than  once  a  pair  of  these  birds  attack  some 
magpies  that  had  disturbed  their  nest,  with  great  violence  and  loud 
shrieks. — Markv^ick. 

44 


In  the  season  of  nidification  the  wildest  birds  are 
comparatively  tame.  Thus  the  ring-dove  breeds  in 
my  fields,  though  they  are  continually  frequented  ; 
and  the  missel-thrush,  though  most  shy  and  wild  in 
the  autumn  and  winter,  builds  in  my  garden  close 
to  a  walk  where  people  are  passing  all  day  long. 

Wall-fruit  abounds  with  me  this  year ;  but  my 
grapes,  that  used  to  be  forward  and  good,  are  at 
present  backward  beyond  all  precedent:  and  this 
is  not  the  worst  of  the  story  ;  for  the  same  ungenial 
weather,  the  same  black  cold  solstice,  has  injured 
the  more  necessary  fruits  of  the  earth,  and  dis- 
coloured and  blighted  our  wheat.  The  crop  of  hops 
promises  to  be  very  large. 

Frequent  returns  of  deafness  incommode  me  sad- 
ly, and  half  disqualify  me  as  a  naturalist ;  for,  when 
those  fits  are  upon  me,  I  lose  all  the  pleasing  notices 
and  little  intimations  arising  from  rural  sounds  ;  and 
May  is  to  me  as  silent  and  mute  with  respect  to  the 
notes  of  birds,  etc.,  as  August.  My  eyesight  is, 
thank  God,  quick  and  good  ;  but  with  respect  to 
the  other  sense,  1  am,  at  times,  disabled: 

"And  wisdom  at  one  entrance  quite  shut  out." 
Selborne,  Sept.  13,  1774. 


45 


LETTER    LXIV. 
To  Thomas  Pennant,  Esq. 

Some  future  faunist,  a  man  of  fortune,  will,  I 
hope,  extend  his  visits  to  the  kingdom  of  Ireland ;  a 
new  field,  and  a  country  little  known  to  the  natural- 
ist. He  will  not,  it  is  to  be  wished,  undertake  that 
tour  unaccompanied  by  a  botanist,  because  the 
mountains  have  scarcely  been  sufficiently  examined  ; 
and  the  southerly  counties  of  so  mild  an  island  may 
possibly  afford  some  plants  little  to  be  expected 
within  the  British  dominions.  A  person  of  a  think- 
ing turn  of  mind  will  draw  many  just  remarks  from 
the  modern  improvements  of  that  country,  both  in 
arts  and  agriculture,  where  premiums  obtained,  long 
before  they  were  heard  of  with  us.  The  manners  of 
the  wild  natives,  their  superstitions,  their  prejudices, 
their  sordid  way  of  life,  will  extort  from  him  many 
useful  reflections.  He  should  also  take  with  him  an 
able  draughtsman  ;  for  he  must  by  no  means  pass 
over  the  noble  castles  and  seats,  the  extensive  and 
picturesque  lakes  and  waterfalls,  and  the  lofty  stu- 
pendous mountains,  so  little  known,  and  so  engaging 
to  the  imagination  when  described  and  exhibited  in 
a  lively  manner :  such  a  work  would  be  well  re- 
ceived. 

As   I  have  seen  no  modern   map   of  Scotland,  I 

cannot  pretend    to  say  how  accurate    or   particular 

46 


any  such  may  be ;  but  this  I  know,  that  the  best  old 
maps  of  that  kingdom  are  very  defective.  The  great 
obvious  defect  that  I  have  remarked  in  all  maps  of 
Scotland  that  have  fallen  in  my  way  is  the  want  of 
a  coloured  line  or  stroke  that  shall  exactly  define 
the  just  limits  of  that  district  called  the  Highlands. 
Moreover,  all  the  great  avenues  to  that  mountain- 
ous and  romantic  country  want  to  be  well  distin- 
guished. The  military  roads  formed  by  General 
Wade  are  so  great  and  Roman-like  an  undertaking 
that  they  will  merit  attention.  My  old  map,  Moll's 
map,  takes  notice  of  Fort  William  ;  but  could  not 
mention  the  other  forts  that  have  been  erected  long 
since  :  therefore  a  good  representation  of  the  chain 
of  forts  should  not  be  omitted. 

The  celebrated  zigzag  up  the  Coryarich  must 
not  be  passed  over.  Moll  takes  notice  of  Hamilton 
and  Drumlanrig,  and  such  capital  houses ;  but  the 
new  survey,  no  doubt,  should  represent  every  seat 
and  castle  remarkable  for  any  great  event,  or  cele- 
brated for  its  paintings,  &c.  Lord  Breadalbane's 
seat  and  beautiful  policy  are  too  curious  and  ex- 
traordinary to  be  omitted. 

The  seat  of  the  Earl  of  Eglintoun,  near  Glasgow, 
is  worthy  of  notice.  The  pine-plantations  of  that 
nobleman  are  very  grand  and  extensive  indeed. 

Selborne,  March  9,  1775. 


47 


LETTER    LXV. 

To   THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

On  September  the  21st,  1741,  being  then  on  a 
visit,  and  intent  on  field-diversions,  I  rose  before  day- 
break:  when  I  came  into  the  inclosures,  I  found  the 
stubbles  and  clover-grounds  matted  all  over  with  a 
thick  coat  of  cobweb,  in  the  meshes  of  which  a  copi- 
ous and  heavy  dew  hung  so  plentifully  that  the  whole 
face  of  the  country  seemed,  as  it  were,  covered  with 
two  or  three  setting-nets  drawn  one  over  another. 
When  the  dogs  attempted  to  hunt,  their  eyes  were 
so  blinded  and  hoodwinked  that  they  could  not  pro- 
ceed, but  were  obliged  to  lie  down  and  scrape  the 
incumbrances  from  their  faces  with  their  fore-feet, 
so  that,  finding  my  sport  interrupted,  I  returned 
home,  musing  in  my  mind  on  the  oddness  of  the 
occurrence. 

As  the  morning  advanced  the  sun  became  bright 
and  warm,  and  the  day  turned  out  one  of  those  most 
lovely  ones  which  no  season  but  the  autumn  pro- 
duces, cloudless,  calm,  serene,  and  worthy  of  the 
South  of  France  itself. 

About  nine  an  appearance  very  unusual  began  to 
demand  our  attention,  a  shower  of  cobwebs  falling 
from  very  elevated  regions,  and  continuing,  without 
any  interruption,  till  the  close  of  the  day.  These 
webs  were  not  single  filmy  threads,  floating  in  the 

48 


air  in  all  directions,  but  perfect  flakes  or  rags ;  some 
near  an  inch  broad,  and  five  or  six  long,  which  fell 
with  a  degree  of  velocity  that  showed  they  were 
considerably  heavier  than  the  atmosphere. 

On  every  side,  as  the  observer  turned  his  eyes, 
might  he  behold  a  continual  succession  of  fresh 
flakes  falling  into  his  sight,  and  twinkling  like  stai's 
as  they  turned  their  sides  towards  the  sun. 

How  far  this  wonderful  shower  extended  it 
would  be  difficult  to  say  ;  but  we  know  that  it 
reached  Bradley,  Selborne,  and  Alresford,  three 
places  which  lie  in  a  sort  of  triangle,  the  shortest  of 
whose  sides  is  about  eight  miles  in  extent. 

At  the  second  of  those  places  there  was  a  gen- 
tleman (for  whose  veracity  and  intelligent  turn  we 
have  the  greatest  veneration)  who  observed  it  the 
moment  he  got  abroad  ;  but  concluded  that,  as  soon 
as  he  came  upon  the  hill  above  his  house,  where  he 
took  his  morning  rides,  he  should  be  higher  than 
this  meteor,  which  he  imagined  might  have  been 
blowm,  like  thistledown,  from  the  common  above ; 
but,  to  his  great  astonishment,  when  he  rode  to  the 
most  elevated  part  of  the  down,  300  feet  above  his 
fields,  he  found  the  webs  in  appearance  still  as  much 
above  him  as  before  ;  still  descending  into  sight  in  a 
constant  succession,  and  twinkling  in  the  sun,  so  as 
to  draw  the  attention  of  the  most  incurious. 

Neither  before  nor  after  was  any  such  fall  ob- 
served ;  but  on  this  day  the  flakes  hung  in  the  trees 

49 


and  hedges  so  thick,  that  a  diligent  person  sent  out 
might  have  gathered  baskets  full. 

The  remark  that  I  shall  make  on  these  cobweb- 
like appearances,  called  gossamer,  is,  that,  strange 
and  superstitious  as  the  notions  about  them  were  for- 
merly, nobody  in  these  days  doubts  but  that  they 
are  the  real  production  of  small  spiders,  which 
swarm  in  the  fields  in  fine  weather  in  autumn,  and 
have  a  power  of  shooting  out  webs  from  their  tails 
so  as  to  render  themselves  buoyant,  and  lighter  than 
air.  But  why  these  apterous  insects  should  that  day 
take  such  a  wonderful  aerial  excursion,  and  why 
their  webs  should  at  once  become  so  gross  and  ma- 
terial as  to  be  considerably  more  weighty  than  air, 
and  to  descend  with  precipitation,  is  a  matter  be- 
yond my  skill.  If  I  might  be  allowed  to  hazard 
a  supposition,  I  should  imagine  that  those  filmy 
threads,  when  first  shot,  might  be  entangled  in  the 
rising  dew,  and  so  drawn  up,  spiders  and  all,  by  a 
brisk  evaporation,  into  the  regions  where  clouds  are 
formed  :  and  if  the  spiders  have  a  power  of  coiling 
and  thickening  their  webs  in  the  air,  as  Dr.  Lister 
says  they  have,  then,  when  they  were  become  heavier 
than  the  air,  they  must  fall.* 

*  One  day  when  the  air  was  full  of  such  gossamers,  Dr.  Listers  relates 
that  he  mounted  to  the  highest  part  of  York  Cathedral  and  found  the 
gossamer  webs  still  far  above  him. 

"  Its  sone  some  wonder  at  the  cuuse  of  thunder, 
On  ebbe  and  flode,  on  gossamer  and  mist, 
And  on  all  things  till  that  the  cause  is  wist." — Chaucer. 
5Q 


Every  day  in  fine  weather,  in  autumn  chiefly,  do 
I  see  those  spiders  shooting  out  their  webs  and 
mounting  aloft :  they  will  go  off  from  your  finger  if 
you  will  take  them  into  your  hand.  Last  summer 
one  alighted  on  my  book  as  I  was  reading  in  the  par- 
lour ;  and,  running  to  the  top  of  the  page,  and  shoot- 
ing out  a  web,  took  its  departure  from  thence.  But 
what  I  most  wondered  at  was,  that  it  went  off  with 
considerable  velocity  in  a  place  where  no  air  was 
stirring  ;  and  I  am  sure  that  I  did  not  assist  it  w4th 
my  breath.  So  that  these  little  crawlers  seem  to 
have,  while  mounting,  some  locomotive  power  with- 
out the  use  of  wings,  and  so  move  in  the  air  faster 
than  the  air  itself. 

Selborne, /z<;?<?  8,  1775. 


LETTER    LXVI. 

To    THE    FIONOURABLE    DaINES    BaRRINGTON. 

There  is  a  wonderful  spirit  of  sociality  in  the 
brute  creation,  independent  of  sexual  attachment. 
Of  this  the  congregation  of  gregarious  birds  in  the 
winter  is  a  remarkable  instance. 

Many  horses,  though  quiet  with  company,  will 
not  stay  one  minute  in  a  field  by  themselves :  the 
strongest  fences  cannot  restrain  them.  My  neigh- 
bour's horse  will  not  only  not  stay  by  himself  abroad, 

51 


but  he  will  not  bear  to  be  left  alone  in  a  strangle 
stable  without  discovering  the  utmost  impatience, 
and  endeavouring  to  break  the  rack  and  manger  with 
his  fore-feet.  He  has  been  known  to  leap  out  at 
a  stable-window,  through  which  dung  was  thrown, 
after  company  ;  and  yet  in  other  respects  is  remark- 
ably quiet.  Oxen  and  cows  will  not  fatten  by  them- 
selves :  but  will  neglect  the  finest  pasture  that  is  not 
recommended  by  society.  It  would  be  needless  to 
add  instances  in  sheep,  which  constantly  fiock  to- 
gether. 

But  this  propensity  seems  not  to  be  confined  to 
animals  of  the  same  species ;  for  we  know  a  doe,  still 
alive,  that  was  brought  up  from  a  little  fawn  with  a 
dairy  of  cows ;  with  them  it  goes  a-field,  and  with 
them  it  returns  to  the  yard.  The  dogs  of  the  house 
take  no  notice  of  this  deer,  being  used  to  her ;  but, 
if  strange  dogs  come  by,  a  chase  ensues  ;  while  the 
master  smiles  to  see  his  favourite  securely  leading 
her  pursuers  over  hedge,  or  gate,  or  stile,  till  she 
returns  to  the  cows,  who,  with  fierce  lowings  and 
menacing  horns,  drive  the  assailants  quite  out  of  the 
pasture. 

Even  great  disparity  of  kind  and  size  does  not 
always  prevent  social  advances  and  mutual  fellow- 
ship. For  a  very  intelligent  and  observant  person 
has  assured  me  that,  in  the  former  part  of  his  life, 
keeping  but  one  horse,  he  happened  also  on  a  time 
to  have  but  one  solitary  hen.     These  two  incongru- 

52 


ous  animals  spent  much  of  their  time  together  in  a 
lonely  orchard,  where  they  saw  no  creature  but  each 
other.  By  degrees  an  apparent  regard  began  to 
take  place  between  these  two  sequestered  individu- 
als. The  fowl  would  approach  the  quadruped  with 
notes  of  complacency,  rubbing  herself  gently  against 
his  legs :  while  the  horse  would  look  down  with 
satisfaction,  and  move  with  the  greatest  caution  and 
circumspection,  lest  he  should  trample  on  his  diminu- 
tive companion.  Thus  by  mutual  good  offices,  each 
seemed  to  console  the  vacant  hours  of  the  other  : 
so  that  Milton,  when  he  puts  the  following  senti- 
ment in  the  mouth  of  Adam,  seems  to  be  somewhat 
mistaken : — 

"  Much  less  can  bird  with  beast,  or  fish  with  fowl, 
So  well  converse,  nor  with  the  ox  the  ape." 

Selborne,  Auo-.  15,  1775. 


LETTER    LXVII. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

We  have  two  gangs  or  hordes  of  gypsies  which 
infest  the  south  and  west  of  England,  and  come 
round  in  their  circuit  two  or  three  times  in  the  year. 
One  of  these  tribes  calls  itself  by  the  noble  name  of 
Stanley,  of  which  1  have  nothing  particular  to  say  ; 
but  the    other    is   distinguished    by    an    appellative 

53 


somewhat  remarkable — as  far  as  their  harsh  gibber- 
ish  can   be  understood,   they   seem  to  say   that  the 


Gypsies  in  front  of  "  The    Wakes!''' 

name  of  their  clan  is  Curleople.  Now  the  termina- 
tion of  this  word  is  apparently  Grecian  :  and  as  Me- 
zeray  and  the  gravest  historians  all  agree  that  these 
vagrants  did  certainly  migrate  from  Egypt  and  the 
East,  two  or  three  centuries  ago,  and  so  spread  by 
degrees  over  Europe,  may  not  this  family  name,  a 
little  corrupted,  be  the  very  name  they  brought 
with  them  from  the  Levant?  It  would  be  matter 
of  some  curiosity,  could  one  meet  with  an  intelligent 

54 


person  among  them,  to  inquire  whether,  in  their 
jargon,  they  still  retain  any  Greek  words  :  the 
Greek  radicals  will  appear  in  hand,  foot,  head, 
water,  earth,  &c.  It  is  possible  that  amidst  their 
cant  and  corrupted  dialect  many  mutilated  re- 
mains of  their  native  language  might  still  be  dis- 
covered. 

With  regard  to  those  peculiar  people,  the  gyp- 
sies, one  thing  is  very  remarkable,  and  especially  as 
they  came  from  warmer  climates ;  and  that  is,  that 
while  other  beggars  lodge  in  barns,  stables,  and  cow- 
houses, these  sturdy  savages  seem  to  pride  them- 
selves in  braving  the  severities  of  winter,  and  in 
living  in  the  open  air  the  whole  year  round.  Last 
September  was  as  wet  a  month  as  ever  was  known ; 
and  yet  during  those  deluges  did  a  young  gypsy- 
girl  lie-in  in  the  midst  of  one  of  our  hop-gardens,  on 
the  cold  ground,  with  nothing  over  her  but  a  piece 
of  blanket  extended  on  a  few  hazel-rods  bent  hoop- 
fashion,  and  stuck  into  the  earth  at  each  end,  in  cir- 
cumstances too  trying  for  a  cow  in  the  same  con- 
dition :  vet  within  this  garden  there  was  a  large 
hop-kiln,  into  the  chambers  of  which  she  might  have 
retired  had  she  thought  shelter  an  object  worthy 
her  attention. 

Europe,  itself,  it  seems,  cannot  set  bounds  to  the 
rovings  of  these  vagabonds  ;  for  Mr.  Bell,  in  his  re- 
turn   from    Pekin,   met  a  gang  of   these    people  on 

the  confines  of  Tartary,  who  were  endeavouring  to 
21  55 


penetrate    those    deserts   and     try    their    fortune    in 
China.* 

Gypsies    are    called    in    French,    Bohemians;    in 
Italian  and  modern  Greek,  Zingari. 

Selborne,  Oct.  2,  1775. 


LETTER    LXVIII. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

"Hie     -     -     -     -     tsedse  pingues,  hic  plurimus  ignis 

vSemper,  et  assidua  postes  fuligine  nigri." 

(ViRG.  Eel.  vii.  49,  50.) 
"  Here  are  fat  torches,  here  abundant  fire, 

Here  constant  smoke  has  black'd  each  side  the  door." 

I  SHALL  make  no  apology  for  troubling  you  with 
the  detail  of  a  very  simple  piece  of  domestic  econ- 
omy, being  satisfied  that  you  think  noth- 
\  ing  beneath  your   attention    that    tends 

(\     III  to   utility :    the  matter   alluded  to  is  the 

Ijl^-^,^^^  use   of   rushes    instead   of  candles, 

U  ^^"^     which  I   am    well    aware    prevails 

I  in    many    districts     besides    this ; 

I  but    as    I    know    there    are     countries 

also  where  it  does  not  obtain,  and  as 
I    have    considered    the    subject    with 
A  rush-light.       somc  degree  of  exactness,  I  shall  pro- 

*  See  Bell's  "  Travels  in  China." 
56 


ceed  with  my  humble  story,  and  leave  you  to  judge 
of  the  expediency. 

The  proper  species  of  rush  for  this  purpose  seems 
to  be  \\\^  Jiinais  conglonieratus,  or  common  soft  rush, 
which  is  to  be  found  in  most  moist  pastures,  by  the 
sides  of  streams,  and  under  hedges.  These  rushes 
are  in  best  condition  in  the  height  of  summer  ;  but 
may  be  gathered,  so  as  to  serve  the  purpose  well, 
quite  on  to  autumn.  It  would  be  needless  to  add 
that  the  largest  and  longest  are  best.  Decayed  la- 
bourers, women,  and  children,  make  it  their  business 
to  procure  and  prepare  them.  As  soon  as  they  are 
cut  they  must  be  flung  into  the  water,  and  kept 
there  ;  for  otherwise  they  will  dry  and  shrink,  and 
the  peel  will  not  run.  At  first  a  person  would  find 
it  no  easy  matter  to  divest  a  rush  of  its  peel  or 
rind,  so  as  to  leave  one  regular,  narrow,  even  rib 
from  top  to  bottom  that  may  support  the  pith :  but 
this,  like  other  feats,  soon  becomes  familiar  even  to 
children  ;  and  we  have  seen  an  old  woman,  stone- 
blind,  performing  this  business  with  great  despatch, 
and  seldom  failing  to  strip  them  with  the  nicest  reg- 
ularity. When  these  jiinci  are  thus  far  prepared, 
they  must  lie  out  on  the  grass  to  be  bleached,  and 
take  the  dew  for  some  nights,  and  afterwards  be 
dried  in  the  sun. 

Some  address  is  required  in  dipping  these  rushes 
in  the  scalding  fat  or  grease  ;  but  this  knack  also  is 
to  be  attained   by  practice.     The  careful  wife  of  an 

57 


industrious  Hampshire  labourer  obtains  all  her  fat 
for  nothing;  for  she  saves  the  scummings  of  her 
bacon-pot  for  this  use  ;  and,  if  the  grease  abounds 
with  salt,  she  causes  the  salt  to  precipitate  to  the 
bottom,  by  setting  the  scummings  in  a  warm  oven. 
Where  hogs  are  not  much  in  use,  and  especially  by 
the  sea-side,  the  coarser  animal  oils  will  come  very 
cheap.  A  pound  of  common  grease  may  be  pro- 
cured for  fourpence  ;  and  about  six  pounds  of  grease 
will  dip  a  pound  of  rushes  ;  and  one  pound  of  rushes 
may  be  bought  for  one  shilling ;  so  that  a  pound  of 
rushes,  medicated  and  ready  for  use,  will  cost  three 
shillings.  If  men  that  keep  bees  will  mix  a  little  wax 
with  the  grease,  it  will  give  it  a  consistency,  and 
render  it  more  cleanly,  and  make  the  rushes  burn 
longer ;  mutton-suet  will  have  the  same  effect. 

A  good  rush,  which  measured  in  length  two  feet 
four  inches  and  a  half,  being  minuted,  burnt  only 
three  minutes  short  of  an  hour :  and  a  rush  still  of 
greater  length  has  been  known  to  burn  one  hour  and 
a  quarter. 

These  rushes  give  a  good  clear  light.  Watch- 
lights  (coated  with  tallow),  it  is  true,  shed  a  dismal 
one,  "  darkness  visible  ;  "  but  then  the  wicks  of  those 
have  two  ribs  of  the  rind,  or  peel,  to  support  the 
pith,  w^hile  the  wick  of  the  dipped  rush  has  but  one. 
The  two  ribs  are  intended  to  impede  the  progress 
of  the  flame  and  make  the  candle  last. 

In  a  pound  of  dry  rushes,  avoirdupois,  which  I 
58 


caused  to  be  weighed  and  numbered,  we  found  up- 
wards of  one  thousand  six  hundred  individuals. 
Now  suppose  each  of  these  burns,  one  with  another, 
only  half  an  hour,  then  a  poor  man  will  purchase 
eight  hundred  hours  of  light,  a  time  exceeding 
thirty-three  entire  days,  for  three  shillings.  Accord- 
ing to  this  account  each  rush,  before  dipping,  costs 
3I3  of  a  farthing,  and  ^  afterwards.  Thus  a  poor 
family  will  enjoy  five  and  a  half  hours  of  comfort- 
able light  for  a  farthing.  An  experienced  old  house- 
keeper assures  me  that  one  pound  and  a  halt  of 
rushes  completely  supplies  his  family  the  year 
round,  since  working  people  burn  no  candle  in  the 
long  days,  because  they  rise  and   go  to  bed  by  day- 

light. 

Little  farmers  use  rushes  much,  in  the  short  days, 
both  morning  and  evening,  in  the  dairy  and  kitchen ; 
but  the  very  poor,  who  are  always  the  worst  econo- 
mists, and  therefore  must  continue  very  poor,  buy 
a  halfpenny  candle  every  evening,  which,  in  their 
blowing  open  rooms,  does  not  burn  much  more  than 
two  hours.  Thus  have  they  only  two  hours'  light 
for  their  money  instead  of  eleven. 

While  on  the  subject  of  rural  economy,  it  may 
not  be  improper  to  mention  a  pretty  implement  of 
housewifery  that  I  have  seen  nowhere  else  ;  that  is, 
little  neat  besoms  which  our  foresters  make  from 
the  stalk  of  the  Polytriaim  commune,  or  great  golden 
maiden-hair,    which    they    call    silk-wood,    and    find 

59 


plenty  in  the  bogs.  When  this  moss  is  well  combed 
and  dressed,  and  divested  of  its  outer  skin,  it  be- 
comes of  a  beautiful  bright  chestnut  colour;  and, 
being  soft  and  pliant,  is  very  proper  for  the  dusting 
of  beds,  curtains,  carpets,  hangings,  &c.  if  these 
besoms  were  known  to  the  brushmakers  in  town,  it 
is  probable  they  might  come  much  more  into  use 
for  the  purpose  above  mentioned.* 

Selborne,  Nov.  i,  1776, 


LETTER    LXIX. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

We  had  in  this  village  more  than  twenty  years 
ago  an  idiot  boy,  whom  I  well  remember,  who,  from 
a  child,  showed  a  strong  propensity  to  bees ;  they 
were  his  food,  his  amusement,  his  sole  object.  And 
as  people  of  this  cast  have  seldom  more  than  one 
point  in  view,  so  this  lad  exerted  all  his  few  facul- 
ties on  this  one  pursuit.  In  the  winter  he  dozed 
away  his  time,  within  his  father's  house,  by  the  fire- 
side, in  a  kind  of  torpid  state,  seldom  departing  from 
the  chimney-corner;  but  in  the  summer  he  was  all 
alert,  and  in  quest  of  his  game  in  the  fields,  and  on 
sunny  banks.     Honey-bees,  humble-bees,  and  wasps, 

*  A  besom  of  this  sort  is  to  be  seen  in  Sir  Ashton  Lever's  Museum. 

60 


were    his    prey    wherever  he    found    them :    he  had 
no  apprehensions   from   their   stings,   but   he   would 


Catching  bees. 

seize  them  nudis  manibus,  and  at  once  disarm  them 
of  their  weapons,  and  suck  their  bodies  for  the  sake 
of  their  hone3'-bags.  Sometimes  he  would  fill  his 
bosom  betw^een  his  shirt  and  his  skin  with  a  number  of 
these  captives ;  and  sometimes  would  confine  them  in 
bottles.  He  was  a  very  Merops  apiaster,  or  bee-bird  ; 
and  very  injurious  to  men  that  kept  bees  :  for  he 
would  slide  into  their  bee-gardens,  and,  sitting  down 
before  the  stools,  would  rap  with  his  finger  on  the 
hives,  and  so  t?ike  the  bees  as  they  came  out.     He 

6i 


has  been  known  to  overturn  hives  for  the  sake  of 
honey,  of  which  he  was  passionately  fond.  Where 
metheglin  was  making  he  would  linger  round  the 
tubs  and  vessels,  begging  a  draught  of  what  he 
called  bee-wine.  As  he  ran  about  he  used  to  make  a 
humming  noise  with  his  lips,  resembling  the  buzzing 
of  bees.  This  lad  was  lean  and  sallow,  and  of  a 
cadaverous  complexion  ;  and,  except  in  his  favourite 
pursuit,  in  which  he  was  w^onderfully  adroit,  dis- 
covered no  manner  of  understanding.  Had  his  ca- 
pacity been  better,  and  directed  to  the  same  object, 
he  had  perhaps  abated  much  of  our  wonder  at  the 
feats  of  a  more  modern  exhibiter  of  bees  ;  and  we 
may  justly  say  of  him  now, — 

"  —    —    —    —    —    —    —    —  Thou, 

Had  thy  presiding  star  propitious  shone, 
Shouldst   IVildman  be     —     —     —     — ." 

When  a  tall  youth  he  was  removed  from  hence 
to  a  distant  village,  where  he  died,  as  I  understand, 
before  he  arrived  at  manhood. 

Selborne,  Dec.  12,  1775. 


LETTER    LXX. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

It  is  the  hardest  thing  in  the  world  to  shake  off 

superstitious  prejudices ;    they   are   sucked   in,   as  it 

62 


were,  with  our  mother's  milk ;  and,  growing  up  with 
us  at  a  time  when  they  take  the  fastest  hold  and 
make  the  most  lasting  impressions,  become  so  inter- 
woven into  our  very  constitutions,  that  the  strongest 
good  sense  is  required  to  disengage  ourselves  from 
them.  No  wonder,  therefore,  that  the  lower  people 
retain  them  their  whole  lives  through,  since  their 
minds  are  not  invigorated  by  a  liberal  education,  and 
therefore  not  enabled  to  make  any  efforts  adequate 
to  the  occasion. 

Such  a  preamble  seems  to  be  necessary  before 
we  enter  on  the  superstitions  of  this  district,  lest 
we  should  be  suspected  of  exaggeration  in  a  recital 
of  practices  too  gross  for  this  enlightened  age. 

But  the  people  of  Tring,  in  Hertfordshire,  would 
do  well  to  remember,  that  no  longer  ago  than  the 
year  175 1,  and  within  twenty  miles  of  the  capital, 
they  seized  on  two  superannuated  wretches,  crazed 
with  age,  and  overwhelmed  with  infirmities,  on  a 
suspicion  of  witchcraft ;  and,  by  trying  experiments, 
drowned  them  in  a  horse-pond. 

In  a  farm-yard  near  the  middle  of  this  village 
stands,  at  this  day,  a  row  of  pollard-ashes,  which,  by 
the  seams  and  long  cicatrices  down  their  sides, 
manifestly  show  that,  in  former  times,  they  have 
been  cleft  asunder.  These  trees,  when  young  and 
flexible,  were  severed  and  held  open  by  wedges, 
while  ruptured  children,  stripped  naked,  were 
pushed  through  the  apertures,   under  a  persuasion 

63 


that,  by  such  a  process,  the  poor  babes  would  be 
cured  of  their  infirmity.  As  soon  as  the  operation 
was  over,  the  tree,  in  the  suffering  part,  was  plas- 
tered with  loam,  and  carefully  swathed  up.  If  the 
parts  coalesced  and  soldered  together,  as  usually 
fell  out  where  the  feat  was  performed  with  any 
adroitness  at  all,  the  party  was  cured  ;  but  where 
the  cleft  continued  to  gape,  the  operation,  it  was 
supposed,  would  prove  ineffectual.  Having  occa- 
sion to  enlarge  my  garden  not  long  since,  1  cut 
down  two  or  three  such  trees,  one  of  which  did  not 
grow  together. 

We  have  several  persons  now  living  in  the  vil- 
lage, who,  in  their  childhood,  were  supposed  to  be 
healed  by  this  superstitious  ceremony,  derived  down 
perhaps  from  our  Saxon  ancestors,  who  practised  it 
before  their  conversion  to  Christianity. 

At  the  south  corner  of  the  Plestor,  or  area,  near 
the  church,  there  stood,  about  twenty  years  ago,  a 
very  old  grotesque  hollow  pollard-ash,  which  for 
aofes  had  been  looked  on  with  no  small  veneration 
as  a  shrew-ash.  Now  a  shrew-ash  is  an  ash  whose 
twigs  or  branches,  when  gently  applied  to  the  limbs 
of  cattle,  will  immediately  relieve  the  pains  which  a 
beast  suffers  from  the  running  of  a  shrew-mouse  over 
the  part  affected  ;  for  it  is  supposed  that  a  shrew- 
mouse  is  of  so  baneful  and  deleterious  a  nature,  that 
wherever  it  creeps  over  a  beast,  be  it  horse,  cow,  or 

sheep,  the  suffering  animal    is    afflicted    with    cruel 

64 


anguish,  and  threatened  with  the  loss  of  the  use  of 
the  limb.  Against  this  accident,  to  which  they  are 
continually  liable,  our  provident  forefathers  always 
kept  a  shrew-ash  at  hand,  which,  when  once  medi- 
cated, would  maintain  its  virtue  forever.  A  shrew- 
ash  was  made  thus :  ^ — Into  the  body  of  the  tree  a 
deep  hole  was  bored  with  an  auger,  and  a  poor  de- 
voted shrew-mouse  was  thrust  in  alive,  and  plugged 
in,  no  doubt,  with  several  quaint  incantations  long 
since  forgotten.  As  the  ceremonies  necessary  for 
such  a  consecration  are  no  longer  understood,  all 
succession  is  at  an  end,  and  no  such  tree  is  known 
to  subsist  in  the  manor,  or  hundred. 
As  to  that  on  the  Plestor,  for 

"  The  late  vicar  stubb'd  and  burnt  it," 

when  he  was  way- warden,  regardless  of  the  remon- 
strances of  the  bystanders,  who  interceded  in  vain 
for  its  preservation,  urging  its  power  and  efficacy, 
and  alleging  that  it  had  been  ''guarded  through 
many  years  by  the  piety  of  our  ancestors  ;  " 

"  Religione  patrum  multos  servata  per  annes." 
Selborne, /^z;?.  8,  1776. 


For  a  similar  practice,  White  refers  us  to  Plot's  "  Staffordshire.' 


65 


LETTER   LXXI. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

In  heavy  fogs,  on  elevated  situations  especially, 
trees  are  perfect  alembics :  and  no  one  that  has  not 
attended  to  such  matters  can  imagine  how  much 
water  one  tree  will  distil  in  a  night's  time,  by  con- 
densing the  vapour  which  trickles  down  the  twigs 
and  boughs,  so  as  to  make  the  ground  below  quite 
in  a  iioat.  In  Newton-lane,  in  October,  1775,  on  a 
misty  day,  a  particular  oak  in  leaf  dropped  so  fast 
that  the  cartway  stood  in  puddles  and  the  ruts  ran 
with  water,  though  the  ground  in  general  was  dusty. 

In  some  of  our  smaller  islands  in  the  West  Indies, 
if  I  mistake  not,  there  are  no  springs  or  rivers  ;  but 
the  people  are  supplied  with  that  necessary  element, 
water,  merely  by  the  dripping  of  some  large  tall 
trees,  which,  standing  in  the  bosom  of  a  mountain, 
keep  their  heads  constantly  enveloped  with  fogs  and 
clouds,  from  which  they  dispense  their  kindly,  never- 
ceasing  moisture ;  and  so  render  those  districts  hab- 
itable by  condensation  alone. 

Trees  in  leaf  have  such  a  vast  proportion  more  of 
surface  than  those  that  are  naked,  that,  in  theory, 
their  condensations  should  greatly  exceed  those  that 
are  stripped  of  their  leaves ;  but,  as  the  former  im- 
bibe also  a  great  quantity  of  moisture,  it  is  difficult 

to  say  which  drip  most :  but  this   I   know,  that  de- 

66 


ciduous  trees  that  are  entwined  with  much  ivy 
seem  to  distil  the  greatest  quantity.  Ivy  leaves  are 
smooth,  and  thick,  and  cold,  and  therefore  condense 
very  fast ;  and  besides,  evergreens  imbibe  very  little. 
These  facts  may  furnish  the  intelligent  with  hints 
concerning  what  sorts  of  trees  they  should  plant 
round  small  ponds  that  they  would  wish  to  be  per- 
ennial ;  and  show  them  how  advantageous  some 
trees  are  in  preference  to  others. 

Trees  perspire  profusely,  condense  largely,  and 
check  evaporation  so  much,  that  woods  are  always 
moist :  no  wonder  therefore  that  they  contribute 
much  to  pools  and  streams. 

That  trees  are  great  promoters  of  lakes  and 
rivers  appears  from  a  well  known  fact  in  North 
America ;  for,  since  the  woods  and  forests  have 
been  grubbed  and  cleared,  all  bodies  of  water  are 
much  diminished  ;  so  that  some  streams,  that  were 
very  considerable  a  century  ago,  will  not  now  drive 
a  common  mill.*  Besides,  most  woodlands,  forests, 
and  chases,  with  us  abound  with  pools  and  mo- 
rasses ;  no  doubt  for  the  reason  given  above. 

To  a  thinking  mind  few  phenomena  are  more 
strange  than  the  state  of  little  ponds  on  the  sum- 
mits of  chalk-hills,  many  of  which  are  never  dry  in 
the  most  trying  droughts  of  summer.  On  chalk- 
hills,  I  say,  because  in  many  rocky  and  gravelly  soils 

*  Vide  Kalm's  "  Travels  in  North  America." 
67 


springs  usually  break  out  pretty  high  on  the  sides 
of  elevated  grounds  and  mountains ;  but  no  person 
acquainted  with  chalky  districts  will  allow  that  they 
ever  saw  springs  in  such  a  soil,  but  only  in  valleys 
and  bottoms,  since  the  waters  of  so  pervious  a 
stratum  as  chalk  all  lie  on  one  dead  level,  as  well- 
diggers  have  assured  me  again  and  again. 

Now  we  have  many  such  little  round  ponds  in 
this  district ;  and  one  in  particular  on  our  sheep- 
down,  three  hundred  feet  above  my  house;  which, 
though  never  above  three  feet  deep  in  the  middle, 
and  not  more  than  thirty  feet  in  diameter,  and  con- 
taining perhaps  not  more  than  two  or  three  hundred 
hogsheads  of  water,  yet  never  is  it  known  to  fail, 
though  it  affords  drink  for  three  hundred  or  four 
hundred  sheep,  and  for  at  least  twenty  head  of  large 
cattle  beside.  This  pond,  it  is  true,  is  overhung 
with  two  moderate-sized  beeches,  that  doubtless  at 
times  afford  it  much  suppl}^ ;  but  then  we  have 
others  as  small,  that,  without  the  aid  of  trees,  and  in 
spite  of  evaporation  from  sun  and  wind,  and  per- 
petual consumption  by  cattle,  yet  constantly  main- 
tain a  moderate  share  of  water,  without  overflowing 
in  the  wettest  seasons,  as  they  would  do  if  supplied 
by  springs.  By  my  journal  of  May,  1775,  it  appears 
that  "  the  small  and  even  considerable  ponds  in  the 
vales  are  now  dried  up,  while  the  small  ponds  on  the 
very  tops  of  hills  are  but  little  affected."  Can  this 
difference   be  accounted  for  from  evaporation  alone, 

68 


which  certainly  is  more  prevalent  in  bottoms  ?  or 
rather,  have  not  those  elevated  pools  some  unnoticed 
recruits,  which  in  the  night  time  counterbalance  the 
waste  of  the  day,  without  which  the  cattle  alone 
must  soon  exhaust  them  ?  And  here  it  will  be  neces- 
sary to  enter  more  minutely  into  the  cause.  Dr. 
Hales,  in  his  Vegetable  Statics,  advances,  from  ex- 
periment, that  *'  the  moister  the  earth  is  the  more 
dew  falls  on  it  in  a  night :  and  more  than  a  double 
quantity  of  dew  falls  on  a  surface  of  water  than  there 
does  on  an  equal  surface  of  moist  earth."  Hence  we 
see  that  water,  by  its  coolness,  is  enabled  to  assimi- 
late to  itself  a  large  quantity  of  moisture  nightly  by 
condensation ;  and  that  the  air,  when  loaded  with 
fogs  and  vapours,  and  even  with  copious  dews,  can 
alone  advance  a  considerable  and  never-failing  re- 
source. Persons  that  are  much  abroad,  and  travel 
early  and  late,  such  as  shepherds,  fishermen,  &c.,  can 
tell  what  prodigious  fogs  prevail  in  the  night  on 
elevated  downs,  even  in  the  hottest  parts  of  summer; 
and  how  much  the  surfaces  of  things  are  drenched 
by  those  swimming  vapours,  though,  to  the  senses, 
all  the  while,  little  moisture  seems  to  fall. 

Selborne,  Feb.  7,  1776. 


LETTER    LXXII. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daixes  Barrington. 

Monsieur  Herissant,  a  French  anatomist,  seems 
persuaded  that  he  has  discovered  the  reason  why 
cuckoos  do  not  hatch  their  own  eggs;  the  impedi- 
ment, he  supposes,  arises  from  the  internal  structure 
of  their  parts,  which  incapacitates  them  for  incuba- 
tion. According  to  this  gentleman,  the  crop  or  craw 
of  a  cuckoo  does  not  lie  before  the  sternum  at  the 
bottom  of  the  neck,  as  in  the  poultry,  gallince,  and 
pigeons,  colunibcE,  &c.,  but  immediately  behind  it,  on 
and  over  the  bowels,  so  as  to  make  a  large  protuber- 
ance in  the  belly. "^ 

Induced  by  this  assertion,  we  procured  a  cuckoo; 
and,  cutting  open  the  breast  bone,  and  exposing  the 
intestines  to  sight,  found  the  crop  lying  as  men- 
tioned above.  This  stomach  was  large  and  round, 
and  stuffed  hard  like  a  pincushion  with  food,  which, 
upon  nice  examination,  we  found  to  consist  of  various 
insects ;  such  as  small  scarabs,  spiders,  and  dragon- 
flies  ;  the  last  of  which  we  have  seen  cuckoos  catch- 
ing on  the  wing  as  they  were  just  emerging  out  of 
the  aurelia  state.  Among  this  farrago  also  were  to 
be  seen  maggots,  and  many  seeds,  which  belonged 
either  to  gooseberries,  currants,  cranberries,  or  some 


*  Histoire  de  rAcademie  Royale,  1752. 
70 


such  fruit ;  so  that  these  birds  apparently  subsist  on 
insects  and  fruits:  nor  was  there  the  least  appear- 
ance of  bones,  feathers,  or  fur  to  support  the  idle 
notion  of  their  being  birds  of  prey. 

The  sternum  in  this  bird  seemed  to  us  to  be  re- 
markably short,  between  which  and  the  anus  lay  the 
crop,  or  craw,  and  immediately  behind  that  the  bow- 
els against  the  back-bone. 

It  must  be  allowed,  as  this  anatomist  observes, 
that  the  crop  placed  just  upon  the  bowels  must, 
especially  when  full,  be  in  a  very  uneasy  situation 
during  the  business  of  incubation  ;  yet  the  test  will 
be  to  examine  whether  birds  that  are  actually  known 
to  sit  for  certain  are  not  formed  in  a  similar  man- 
ner. This  inquiry  I  proposed  to  myself  to  make  with 
a  fern-owl,  or  goat-sucker,  as  soon  as  opportunity 
offered :  because,  if  their  formation  proves  the  same, 
the  reason  for  incapacity  in  the  cuckoo  will  be 
allowed  to  have  been  taken  up  somewhat  hastily. 

Not  long  after  a  fern-owl  was  procured,  which, 
from  its  habit  and  shape,  we  suspected  might  resem- 
ble the  cuckoo  in  its  internal  construction.  Nor 
were  our  suspicions  ill-grounded  ;  for  upon  dissec- 
tion, the  crop,  or  craw,  also  lay  behind  the  sternum, 
immediately  on  the  viscera,  between  them  and  the 
skin  of  the  belly.  It  was  bulky,  and  stuffed  hard 
with  large  pJialcEnce,  moths  of  several  sorts,  and  their 
eggs,  which  no  doubt  had  been  forced  out  of  those 
insects  by  the  action  of  swallowing. 

71 


Now  as  it  appears  that  this  bird,  which  is  so  well 
known  to  practise  incubation,  is  formed  in  a  similar 
manner  with  cuckoos,  Monsieur  Herissant's  conjec- 
ture, that  cuckoos  are  incapable  of  incubation  from 
the  disposition  of  their  intestines,  seems  to  fall  to 
the  ground  :  and  we  are  still  at  a  loss  for  the  cause 
of  that  strange  and  singular  peculiarity  in  the  in- 
stance of  the  Cuciiliis  canoriis. 

We  found  the  case  to  be  the  same  with  the  ring- 
tail hawk,  in  respect  to  formation  ;  and,  as  far  as  I 
can  recollect,  with  the  swift ;  and  probably  it  is  so 
with  many  more  sorts  of  birds  that  are  not  graniv- 
orous. 

Selborne,  April  I,  1776. 


LETTER    LXXIII. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

On  August  the  4th,  1775,  we  surprised  a  large 

viper,  which   seemed  very  heavy  and  bloated,  as  it 

lay  in  the  grass  basking  in  the  sun.     When  we  came 

to  cut  it  up,  we  found  that  the  abdomen  was  crowded 

with  young,  fifteen  in  number  ;  the  shortest  of  which 

measured  full  seven  inches,  and  were  about  the  size 

of  full-grown  earthworms.     This  little  fry  issued  into 

the   world   with    the    true  viper  spirit   about   them, 

showing  great  alertness  as  soon  as  disengaged  from 

72 


the  belly  of  the  dam  :  they  twisted  and  wriggled 
about,  and  set  themselves  up,  and  gaped  very  wide 
when  touched  with  a  stick,  showing  manifest  tokens 
of  menace  and  defiance,  though  as  yet  they  had  no 
manner  of  fangs  that  we  could  find,  even  with  the 
help  of  our  glasses. 

To  a  thinking  mind  nothing  is  more  wonderful 
than  that  early  instinct  which  impresses  young  ani- 
mals with  the  notion  of  the  situation  of  their  natural 
weapons,  and  of  using  them  properly  in  their  own 
defence,  even  before  those  weapons  subsist  or  are 
formed.  Thus  a  young  cock  will  spar  at  his  adver- 
sary before  his  spurs  are  grown  ;  and  a  calf  or  a 
lamb  will  push  with  their  heads  before  their  horns 
are  sprouted.  In  the  same  manner  did  these  young 
adders  attempt  to  bite  before  their  fangs  were  in 
being.  The  dam,  however,  was  furnished  with  very 
formidable  ones,  which  we  lifted  up  (for  they  fold 
down  when  not  used),  and  cut  them  off  with  the 
point  of  our  scissors. 

There  was  little  room  to  suppose  that  this  brood 
had  ever  been  in  the  open  air  before ;  and  that  they 
were  taken  in  for  refuge,  at  the  mouth  of  the  dam, 
when  she  perceived  that  danger  was  approaching ; 
because  then  probably  we  should  have  found  them 
somewhere  in  the  neck,  and  not  in  the  abdomen. 

Selborne,  ^/r?'/ 2g,  1776. 


73 


LETTER    LXXIV. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

Castration  has  a  strange  effect ;  it  emasculates 
both  man,  beast,  and  bird,  and  brings  them  to  a  near 
resemblance  of  the  other  sex.  Thus  eunuchs  have 
smooth,  unmuscular  arms,  thighs,  and  legs ;  and 
broad  lips,  and  beardless  chins,  and  squeaking  voices. 
Gelt  stags  and  bucks  have  hornless  heads,  like  hinds 
and  does.  Thus  wethers  have  small  horns,  like  ewes  ; 
and  oxen  large  bent  horns,  and  hoarse  voices  when 
they  low,  like  cows  :  for  bulls  have  short  straight 
horns  ;  and  though  they  mutter  and  grumble  in  a 
deep  tremendous  tone,  yet  they  low  in  a  shrill  high 
key.  Capons  have  small  combs  and  gills,  and  look 
pallid  about  the  head,  like  pullets  ;  they  also  walk 
without  any  parade,  and  hover  over  chickens  like 
hens."^     Barrow-hogs  have  also  small  tusks  like  sows. 

Thus  far  it  is  plain  that  the  deprivation  of  mascu- 
line vigour  puts  a  stop  to  the  growth  of  those  parts 
or  appendages  that  are  looked  upon  as  its  insignia. 
But  the  ingenious  Mr.  Lisle,  in  his  book  on  hus- 
bandry, carries  it  much  farther  ;  for  he  says  that  the 
loss  of  those  insignia  alone  has  sometimes  a  strange 
effect  on  the  ability  itself;  he  had  a  boar  so  fierce 


*  Reaumur,  Mr.  Rennie  tells  us,  trained  capons  to  nurse  the  chickens 
he  hatched  by  artificial  heat.  They  clucked  like  hens  and  proved  good 
nurses. 

74 


and  venereous,  that  to  prevent  mischief,  orders  were 
given  for  his  tusks  to  be  broken  off.  No  sooner  had 
the  beast  suffered  this  injury  than  his  powers  forsook 
him,  and  he  neglected  those  females  to  whom  before 
he  was  passionately  attached,  and  from  whom  no 
fences  could  restrain  him. 


LETTER    LXXV. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

The  natural  term  of  a  hog's  life  is  little  known, 
and  the  reason  is  plain — because  it  is  neither  profit- 
able nor  convenient  to  keep  that  turbulent  animal 
to  the  full  extent  of  its  time  :  however,  my  neigh- 
bour, a  man  of  substance,  who  had  no  occasion  to 
study  every  little  advantage  to  a  nicety,  kept  a  half- 
bred  Bantam  sow,  who  was  as  thick  as  she  was  long, 
and  whose  belly  swept  on  the  ground,  till  she  was 
advanced  to  her  seventeenth  year,  at  which  period 
she  showed  some  tokens  of  age  by  the  decay  of  her 
teeth  and  the  decline  of  her  fertility. 

For  about  ten  years  this  prolific  mother  produced 
two  litters  in  the  year  of  about  ten  at  a  time,  and 
once  above  twenty  at  a  litter ;  but  as  there  were 
near  double  the  number  of  pigs  to  that  of  teats, 
many  died.  From  long  experience  in  the  world  this 
female  was  grown  very  sagacious  and  artful  ; — when 

75 


she  found  occasion  to  converse  with  a  boar  she  used 
to  open  all  the  intervening  gates,  and  march,  by  her- 
self, up  to  a  distant  farm  where  one  was  kept ;  and 
when  her  purpose  was  served  would  return  by  the 
same  means.  At  the  age  of  about  fifteen  her  litters 
began  to  be  reduced  to  four  or  five  ;  and  such  a  litter 
she  exhibited  when  in  her  fatting-pen.  She  proved, 
when  fat,  good  bacon,  juicy,  and  tender;  the  rind,  or 
sward,  was  remarkably  thin.  At  a  moderate  com- 
putation she  was  allowed  to  have  been  the  fruitful 
parent  of  three  hundred  pigs  ;  a  prodigious  instance 
of  fecundity  in  so  large  a  quadruped  !  She  was 
killed  in  spring  1775. 


LETTER    LXXVI. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 


"  —     —     —     —     —     —  admorunt  ubera  tigres." 

"  By  tigers  suckled." 

We  have  remarked  in  a  former  letter  how  much 
incongruous  animals,  in  a  lonely  state,  may  be  at- 
tached to  each  other  from  a  spirit  of  sociality  ;  in 
this  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  recount  a  different  mo- 
tive which  has  been  known  to  create  as  strange  a 
fondness. 

My  friend  had  a  little  helpless  leveret  brought  to 

him,  which   the  servants  fed   with   milk  in  a  spoon, 

76 


and  about  the  same  time  his  cat  kittened  and  the 
young  were  despatched  and  buried.  The  hare  was 
soon  lost,  and  supposed  to  be  gone  the  way  of  most 
fondlings,  to  be  killed  by  some  dog  or  cat.  How- 
ever, in  about  a  fortnight,  as  the  master  was  sitting 
in  his  garden  in  the  dusk  of  the  evening,  he  observed 
his  cat,  with  tail  erect,  trotting  towards  him,  and 
calling  with  little  short  inward  notes  of  complacency, 
such  as  they  use  towards  their  kittens,  and  some- 
thing gamboling  after,  which  proved  to  be  the  lev- 
eret that  the  cat  had  supported  with  her  milk,  and 
continued  to  support  with  great  affection. 

Thus  was  a  graminivorous  animal  nurtured  by  a 
carnivorous  and  predaceous  one  ! 

Why  so  cruel  and  sanguinary  a  beast  as  a  cat,  of 
the  ferocious  genus  of  Feles,  the  Miiriiun  leo,  as  Lin- 
naeus calls  it,  should  be  affected  with  any  tenderness 
towards  an  animal  which  is  its  natural  prey,  is  not  so 
easy  to  determine. 

This  strange  affection  probably  was  occasioned 
by  that  desiderium,  those  tender  maternal  feelings, 
which  the  loss  of  her  kittens  had  awakened  in  her 
breast ;  and  by  the  complacency  and  ease  she  de- 
rived to  herself  from  the  procuring  her  teats  to  be 
drawn,  which  were  too  much  distended  with  milk, 
till,  from  habit,  she  became  as  much  delighted  with 
this  fondling  as  if  it  had  been  her  real  offspring. 

This  incident  is  no  bad  solution  of  that  strange 
circumstance  which  grave  historians  as  w^ell  as  the 

77 


poets  assert,  of  exposed  children  being  sometimes 
nurtured  by  female  wild  beasts  that  probably  had 
lost  their  young.  For  it  is  not  one  whit  more  mar- 
vellous that  Romulus  and  Remus,  in  their  infant 
state,  should  be  nursed  by  a  she-wolf,  than  that  a 
poor  little  suckling  leveret  should  be  fostered  and 
cherished  by  a  bloody  grimalkin. 

"  —     —     —     —     viridi  foetam  Mavortis  in  antro 
Procubuisse  lupam  :  geminos  huic  ubera  circum 
Ludere  pendentes  pueros,  et  lambere  matrem 
Impavidos  ;  illam  tereti  cervice  reflexam 
Mulcere  alternos,  et  corpora  fingere  linguD,," 

(ViRG.  ^11.  viii,  630-634.) 

Or,  as  Christopher  Pitt  renders  the  Roman  poet: — 

"  Here  in  a  verdant  cave's  embowering  shade, 
The  fostering  wolf  and  martial  twins  were  laid  ; 
The  indulgent  mother,  half  reclined  along, 
Look'd  fondly  back,  and  formed  them  with  her  tongue." 

[Again  a  boy  has  taken  three  little  squirrels  in 
their  nest,  or  drey,  as  it  is  called  in  these  parts. 
These  small  creatures  he  put  under  the  care  of  a  cat 
who  had  lately  lost  her  kittens,  and  finds  that  she 
nurses  and  suckles  them  with  the  same  assiduity  and 
affection  as  if  they  were  her  own  offspring. 

So  many  people  went  to  see  the  little  squirrels 
suckled  by  a  cat,  that  the  foster-mother  became  jeal- 
ous of  her  charge,  and  in  pain  for  their  safety  ;  and 
therefore  hid  them  over  the  ceiling,  where  one  died. 
This  circumstance  shows  her  affection  for  these  fond- 


lings,  and  that  she  supposes  the  squirrels  to  be  her 
own  young".  Thus  hens,  when  they  have  hatched 
ducklings,  are  equally  attached  to  them,  as  if  they 
were  their  own  chickens.] — Observations  on  Na- 
ture. 

Selborne,  May  g,  1776. 


LETTER    LXXVII. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

Lands  that  are  subject  to  frequent  inundations 
are  always  poor ;  and  probably  the  reason  may  be 
because  the  worms  are  drowned.  The  most  insig- 
nificant insects  and  reptiles  are  of  much  more  conse- 
quence, and  have  much  more  influence  in  the  econ- 
omy of  Nature,  than  the  incurious  are  aware  of;  and 
are  mighty  in  their  effect,  from  their  minuteness, 
which  renders  them  less  an  object  of  attention  ;  and 
from  their  numbers  and  fecundity.  Earth  worms, 
though  in  appearance  a  small  and  despicable  link 
in  the  chain  of  Nature,  yet,  if  lost,  would  make  a 
lamentable  chasm.  For,  to  say  nothing  of  half  the 
birds,  and  some  quadrupeds  which  are  almost  en- 
tirely supported  by  them,  worms  seem  to  be  great 
promoters  of  vegetation,  which  would  proceed  but 
lamely  without  them  ;  by  boring,  perforating,  and 
loosening  the  soil,  and  rendering  it  pervious  to  rains 

79 


and  the  fibres  of  plants ;  by  drawing  straws  and 
stalks  of  leaves  and  twigs  into  it ;  and,  most  of  all,  by 
throwing  up  such  infinite  numbers  of  lumps  of  earth 
called  worm-casts,  which,  being  their  excrement,  is  a 
fine  manure  for  grain  and  grass.  Worms  probably 
provide  new  soil  for  hills,  and  slopes,  where  the  rain 
washes  the  earth  away  ;  and  they  affect  slopes,  prob- 
ably to  avoid  being  flooded.  Gardeners  and  farmers 
express  their  detestation  of  worms ;  the  former  be- 
cause they  render  their  walks  unsightly,  and  make 
them  much  work:  and  the  latter,  because,  as  they 
think,  w^orms  eat  their  green  corn.  But  these  men 
would  find  that  the  earth  without  worms  would  soon 
become  cold,  hard-bound,  and  void  of  fermentation ; 
and  consequently  sterile :  and  besides,  in  favour  of 
worms,  it  should  be  hinted  that  green  corn,  plants, 
and  flowers  are  not  so  much  injured  by  them  as  by 
many  species  of  coleoptcra  (scarabs)  and  tipidce  (long- 
legs)  in  their  larva,  or  grub-state  ;  and  by  unnoticed 
myriads  of  small  shell-less  snails,  called  slugs,  which 
silently  and  imperceptibly  make  amazing  havoc  in 
the  field  and  garden. 

Farmer  Young,  of  Norton  farm,  says  that  this 
spring  (1777)  about  four  acres  of  his  wheat  in  one  field 
was  entirely  destroyed  by  slugs,  which  swarmed  on 
the  blades  of  corn,  and  devoured  it  as  it  sprang. 

These  hints  we  think  proper  to  throw  out  in 
order  to  set  the  inquisitive  and  discerning  to  work. 

A   good    monography    of    worms    would    afford 

80 


A   walk  in  the  vicar's  garden. 


tVH 


much  entertainment  and  information  at  the  same 
time,  and  would  open  a  large  and  new  field  in 
natural  history.  Worms  work  most  in  the  spring ; 
but  by  no  means  lie  torpid  in  the  dead  months ; 
they  are  out  every  mild  night  in  the  winter,  as  any 
person  may  satisfy  himself.  They  are  hermaphro- 
dites, and  are,  consequently,  very  prolific. 

Selborne,  May  20,  1777. 


LETTER    LXXVIII. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

You  cannot  but  remember  that  the  26th  and  27th 
of  last  March  were  very  hot  days ;  so  sultry  that 
everybody  complained,  and  were  restless  under 
those  sensations  to  w^hich  they  had  not  been  recon- 
ciled by  gradual  approaches. 

This  sudden  summer-like  heat  was  attended  by 
many  summer  coincidences;  for  on  those  two  days 
the  thermometer  rose  to  sixty-six  in  the  shade ; 
many  species  of  insects  revived  and  came  forth  ; 
some  bees  swarmed  in  this  neighbourhood  ;  the  old 
tortoise,  near  Lewes  in  Sussex,  awakened  and  came 
forth  out  of  its  dormitory ;  and,  what  is  most  to 
my  present  purpose,  many  house-swallows  appeared, 
and  were  ver}^  alert  in  many  places,  and  particularly 
at  Cobham,  in  Surrey.  ^    d-0^  A^ 


But  as  that  short  warm  period  was  succeeded  as 
well  as  preceded  by  harsh  severe  weather,  with 
frequent  frosts  and  ice,  and  cutting  winds,  the  in- 
sects withdrew,  the  tortoise  returned  again  into  the 
ground,  and  the  swallows  were  seen  no  more  until 
the  loth  of  April,  when  the  rigour  of  the  spring 
abating,  a  softer  season  began  to  prevail. 

Again,  it  appears  by  my  journals  for  many  years 
past,  that  house-martins  retire,  to  a  bird,  about  the 
beginning  of  October  ;  so  that  a  person  very  observ- 
ant of  such  matters  would  conclude  that  they  had 
taken  their  last  farewell :  but  then,  it  may  be  seen  in 
my  diaries  also  that  considerable  flocks  have  dis- 
covered themselves  again  in  the  first  week  of  No- 
vember, and  often  on  the  fourth  day  of  that  month 
only  for  one  day ;  and  that  not  as  if  they  were  in 
actual  migration,  but  playing  about  at  their  leisure 
and  feeding  calmly,  as  if  no  enterprise  of  moment  at 
all  agitated  their  spirits.  And  this  was  the  case  in 
the  beginning  of  this  very  month  ;  for,  on  the  4th  of 
November,  more  than  tw^enty  house-martins,  which, 
in  appearance,  had  all  departed  about  the  7th  of 
October,  were  seen  again,  for  that  one  morning  only, 
sporting  between  my  fields  and  the  Hanger,  and 
feasting  on  insects  which  swarmed  in  that  sheltered 
district.  The  preceding  day  was  wet  and  bluster- 
ing, but  the  4th  was  dark  and  mild,  and  soft,  the 
wind  at  south-west,  and  the  thermometer  at  58^°;  a 
pitch  not  common  at  that  season  of  the  year.      More- 

82 


over,  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  add  in  this  place,  that 
whenever  the  thermometer  is  above  50°  the  bat 
comes  flitting  out  in  every  autumnal  and  winter 
month. 

From  all  these  circumstances  laid  together,  it  is 
obvious  that  torpid  insects,  reptiles,  and  quadru- 
peds, are  awakened  from  their  profoundest  slum- 
bers by  a  little  untimely  warmth ;  and  therefore 
that  nothing  so  much  promotes  this  death-like  stu- 
por as  a  defect  of  heat.  And  farther,  it  is  reason- 
able to  suppose  that  two  whole  species,  or  at  least 
many  individuals  of  those  two  species,  of  British 
hirundines,  do  never  leave  this  island  at  all,  but  par- 
take of  the  same  benumbed  state :  for  we  cannot 
suppose  that,  after  a  month's  absence,  house-martins 
can  return  from  southern  regions  to  appear  for 
one  morning  in  November,  or  that  house-swallows 
should  leave  the  districts  of  Africa  to  enjoy  in 
March  the  transient  summer  of  a  couple  of  days. 

Selborne,  Nov.  22,  1777. 


LETTER    LXXIX. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

There   was  in  this  village  several  years  ago  a 

miserable  pauper,  who,  from  his  birth,  was  afflicted 

with  a  leprosy,  as  far  as  we  are  aware,  of  a  singular 
23  83 


kind ;  since  it  affected  only  the  palms  of  his  hands 
and  the  soles  of  his  feet.  This  scaly  eruption  usually 
broke  out  twice  in  the  year,  at  the  spring  and  fall ; 
and,  by  peeling  away,  left  the  skin  so  thin  and  ten- 
der that  neither  his  hands  nor  feet  were  able  to  per- 
form their  functions  ;  so  that  the  poor  object  was 
half  his  time  on  crutches,  incapable  of  employ,  and 
languishing  in  a  tiresome  state  of  indolence  and  in- 
activity. His  habit  was  lean,  lank,  and  cadaverous. 
In  this  sad  plight  he  dragged  on  a  miserable  exist- 
ence, a  burden  to  himself  and  his  parish,  which  was 
obliged  to  support  him  till  he  was  relieved  by  death 
at  more  than  thirty  3^ears  of  age. 

The  good  women,  who  love  to  account  for  every 
defect  in  children  by  the  doctrine  of  longing,  said 
that  his  mother  felt  a  violent  propensity  for  oysters, 
which  she  was  unable  to  gratify  ;  and  that  the  black 
rough  scurf  on  his  hands  and  feet  were  the  shells  of 
that  fish.  I  knew  his  parents,  neither  of  whom  were 
lepers ;  his  father  in  particular  lived  to  be  far  ad- 
vanced in  years. 

In  all  ages,  the  leprosy  has  made  dreadful  havoc 
among  mankind.  The  Israelites  seem  to  have  been 
greatly  afflicted  with  it  from  the  most  remote  times ; 
as  appears  from  the  peculiar  and  repeated  injunc- 
tions given  them  in  the  Levitical  law.*  Nor  was  the 
rancour  of  this  foul  disorder  much  abated  in  the  last 


See  Leviticus  xiii.  and  xiv. 
84 


period  of  their  commonwealth,  as  may  be  seen  in 
many  passages  of  the  New  Testament. 

Some  centuries  ago  this  horrible  distemper  pre- 
vailed all  Europe  over  ;  and  our  forefathers  were  by 
no  means  exempt,  as  appears  by  the  large  provisions 
made  for  objects  labouring  under  this  calamity. 
There  was  a  hospital  for  female  lepers  in  the  dio- 
cese of  Lincoln,  a  noble  one  near  Durham,  three  in 
London  and  Southwark,  and  perhaps  many  more  in 
or  near  our  great  towns  and  cities.  Moreover,  some 
crowned  heads,  and  other  wealthy  and  charitable 
personages,  bequeathed  large  legacies  to  such  poor 
people  as  languished  under  this  hopeless  infirmity. 

It  must  therefore,  in  these  days,  be,  to  a  humane 
and  thinking  person,  a  matter  of  equal  wonder  and 
satisfaction,  when  he  contemplates  how  nearly  this 
pest  is  eradicated,  and  observes  that  a  leper  now  is 
a  rare  sight.  He  will,  moreover,  when  engaged  in 
such  a  train  of  thought,  naturally  inquire  for  the 
reason.  This  happy  change  perhaps  may  have  origi- 
nated and  been  continued  from  the  much  smaller 
quantity  of  salted  meat  and  fish  now  eaten  in  these 
kingdoms ;  from  the  use  of  linen  next  the  skin  ;  from 
the  plenty  of  better  bread  ;  and  from  the  profusion 
of  fruits,  roots,  legumes,  and  greens,  so  common  now 
in  every  family.  Three  or  four  centuries  ago,  before 
there  were  any  inclosures,  sown-grasses,  field-turnips, 
or  field-carrots,  or  hay,  all  the  cattle  which  had 
grown  fat  in  summer,  and  were  not  killed  for  winter 

85 


use,  were  turned  out  soon  after  Michaelmas  to  shift 
as  they  could  through  the  dead  months  ;  so  that  no 
fresh  meat  could  be  had  in  winter  or  spring.  Hence 
the  marvellous  account  of  the  vast  stores  of  salted 
flesh  found  in  the  larder  of  the  eldest  Spencer,  viz. 
six  hundred  bacons,  eighty  carcases  of  beef,  and  six 
hundred  muttons,  in  the  days  of  Edward  the  Second, 
even  so  late  in  the  spring  as  the  3rd  of  May.  It  was 
from  magazines  like  these  that  the  turbulent  barons 
supported  in  idleness  their  riotous  swarms  of  retain- 
ers ready  for  any  disorder  or  mischief.  But  agri- 
culture is  now  arrived  at  such  a  pitch  of  perfection, 
that  our  best  and  fattest  meats  are  killed  in  the  win- 
ter ;  and  no  man  need  eat  salted  flesh,  unless  he  pre- 
fers it. 

One  cause  of  this  distemper  might  be,  no  doubt, 
the  quantity  of  wretched  fresh  and  salt  fish  con- 
sumed by  the  commonalty  at  all  seasons  as  well  as  in 
Lent ;  which  our  poor  now  would  hardly  be  per- 
suaded to  touch. 

The  use  of  linen  changes,  shirts  or  shifts,  in  the 
room  of  sordid  and  filthy  woollen,  long  worn  next 
the  skin,  is  a  matter  of  neatness  comparatively  mod- 
ern ;  but  must  prove  a  great  means  of  preventing 
cutaneous  ails.  At  this  very  time  woollen  instead  of 
linen  prevails  among  the  poorer  Welsh,  who  are  sub- 
ject to  foul  eruptions. 

The  plenty  of  good  wheaten  bread  that  now  is 
found  among  all  ranks  of  people  in  the  south,  instead 

86 


of  that  miserable  sort  which  used  in  old  days  to  be 
made  of  barley  or  beans,  may  contribute  not  a  little 
to  the  sweetening  their  blood  and  correcting  their 
juices;  for  the  inhabitants  of  mountainous  districts, 
to  this  day,  are  still  liable  to  the  itch  and  other  cuta- 
neous disorders,  from  poverty  of  diet. 

As  to  the  produce  of  a  garden,  every  middle-aged 
person  of  observation  may  perceive,  within  his  own 
memory,  both  in  town  and  country,  how  vastly  the 
consumption  of  vegetables  is  increased.  Green-stalls 
in  cities  now  support  multitudes  in  a  comfortable 
state,  whilst  gardeners  get  fortunes.  Every  decent 
labourer  has  his  garden,  which  is  half  his  support,  as 
well  as  his  delight ;  and  common  farmers  provide 
plenty  of  beans,  peas,  and  greens,  for  their  hinds  to 
eat  with  their  bacon  ;  and  those  few  that  do  not  are 
despised  for  their  sordid  parsimony,  and  looked 
upon  as  regardless  of  the  welfare  of  their  depend- 
ants. Potatoes  have  prevailed  in  this  little  district, 
by  means  of  premiums,  within  these  twenty  years 
only  ;  and  are  much  esteemed  here  now  by  the  poor, 
who  would  scarce  have  ventured  to  taste  them  in 
the  last  reign. 

Our  Saxon  ancestors  certainly  had  some  sort  of 
cabbage,  because  they  call  the  month  of  February 
sprout-cale  ;*  but,  long  after  their  days,  the  cultiva- 

*  March  was  the  stormy  month  with  our  Saxon  ancestors  ;  May, 
Thromilchi,  the  cows  being  then  milked  three  times  a-day  ;  June,  dig 
and  weed  month  ;  September,  barley  month. — MiTFORD. 

87 


tion  of  gardens  was  little  attended  to.  The  religious, 
being  men  of  leisure,  and  keeping  up  a  constant  cor- 
respondence with  Italy,  were  the  first  people  among 
us  that  had  gardens  and  fruit-trees  in  any  perfection, 
within  the  walls  of  their  abbeys,  priories,  and  monas- 
teries, where  the  lamp  of  knowledge  continued  to 
burn,  however  dimly.  In  them  men  of  business  were 
formed  for  the  state  ;  the  art  of  writing  was  culti- 
vated by  the  monks ;  they  were  the  onh'  proficients  in 
mechanics,  gardening,  and  architecture.  ^  The  bar- 
ons neglected  every  pursuit  that  did  not  lead  to  war 
or  tend  to  the  pleasure  of  the  chase. 

It  was  not  till  gentlemen  took  up  the  study  of 
horticulture  themselves  that  the  knowledge  of  gar- 
deninsf  made  such  hastv  advances.  Lord  Cobham, 
Lord  Ila,  and  Mr.  Waller  of  Beaconsfield,  were  some 
of  the  first  people  of  rank  that  promoted  the  elegant 
science  of  ornamenting  without  despising  the  super- 
intendence of  the  kitchen  quarters  and  fruit  walls. 

A  remark  made  by  the  excellent  Mr.  Ray  in  his 
Tour  of  Europe  at  once  surprises  us,  and  corrobo- 
rates what  has  been  advanced  above  ;  for  we  find 
him  observing,  so  late  as  his  days,  that  "  the  Italians 
use  several  herbs  for  sallets,  which  are  not  yet  or 
have  not  been  but  lately  used  in  England,  viz.  seller i 
(celery\  which  is  nothing  else  but  the  sweet  small- 
age  ;  the  voung  shoots  whereof,  with  a  little  of  the 


Dalrymple's  "  Annals  of  Scotland." 
88 


head  of  the  root  cut  off,  they  eat  raw  with  oil  and 
pepper."  And  farther  he  adds,  "  curled  endive 
blanched  is  much  used  beyond  seas  ;  and,  for  a  raw 
sallet,  seemed  to  excel  lettuce  itself."  Now  this 
journey  was  undertaken  no  longer  ago  than  in  the 
year  1663. 

Selborne,  y^w.  8,  1778. 


LETTER    LXXX. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

"  Forte  puer,  comiium  seductus  ab  agmine  fido, 
Dixerat,  Ecquis  adest  ?  et,  Adest,  responderat  Echo. 
Hie  stupet ;  utque  aciem  partes  divisit  in  omnes  ; 
Voce,  Veni,  clamat  magna.     Vocat  ilia  vocantem." 

(Ovid,  Met,  iii.  379.) 

"  The  youth  being  separated  by  chance  from  his  faithful  attendants, 
calls  aloud,  '  Is  there  any  one  here?'  and  echo  answers,  '  Here.'  He  is 
amazed,  he  casts  his  eyes  on  every  side  and  calls  with  a  loud  voice, 
'  Come  ! '  whereupon  echo  calls  the  youth  who  calls." 

"  She  can't  begin,  but  waits  for  the  rebound, 
To  catch  his  voice  and  then  return  the  sound." 

(Dryden.) 

In  a  district  so  diversified  as  this,  so  full  of  hol- 
low vales  and  hanging  woods,  it  is  no  wonder  that 
echoes  should  abound.  Many  we  have  discovered 
that  return  the  cry  of  a  pack  of  dogs,  the  notes  of  a 
hunting-horn,  a  tunable  ring  of  bells,  or  the  melody 


of  birds,  very  agreeably  :  but  we  were  still  at  a  loss 
for  a  polvsvUabical,  articulate  echo,  till  a  young  gen- 
tleman, who  had  parted  from  his  company  in  a  sum- 
mer evening  walk,  and  was  calling  after  them,  stum- 
bled upon  a  very  curious  one  in  a  spot  where  it 
might  least  be  expected.  At  first  he  w^as  much  sur- 
prised, and  could  not  be  persuaded  but  that  he  was 
mocked  by  some  boy  ;  but,  repeating  his  trials  in 
several  languages,  and  finding  his  respondent  to  be 
a  very  adroit  polyglot,  he  then  discerned  the  de- 
ception. 

This  echo  in  an  evening,  before  rural  noises 
cease,  would  repeat  ten  syllables  most  articulately 
and  distinctly,  especially  if  quick  dactyls  were  chosen. 
The  last  syllables  of 

"  Tityre,  tu  patuloe  recubans   —   —   —   —  "  * 

were  as  audibly  and  intelligibly  returned  as  the  first; 
and  there  is  no  doubt,  could  trial  have  been  made, 
but  that  at  midnight,  when  the  air  is  very  elastic, 
and  a  dead  stillness  prevails,  one  or  two  syllables 
more  might  have  been  obtained  ;  but  the  distance 
rendered  so  late  an  experiment  very  inconven- 
ient. 

Quick  dactyls,  we  observed,  succeeded  best;  for 
when   we   came  to    try   its  powers  in    slow,   heavy, 

*  "  Beneath  the  shade  which  beechen  boughs  diffuse 
You,  Tityrus,  entertain  your  sylvan  muse." 

(Dryden's  J^irg.  EcL  i.  i.) 
90 


embarrassed  spondees  of  the  same  number  of  sylla- 
bles, 

•'  Monstrum  horrendum,  informe,  ingens    —   —  "* 

we  could  perceive  a  return  but  of  four  or  five. 

All  echoes  have  some  one  place  to  which  they  are 
returned  stronger  and  more  distinct  than  to  any 
other  ;  and  that  is  always  the  place  that  lies  at  right 
angles  with  the  object  of  i-epercussion,  and  is  not  too 
near,  nor  too  far  off.  Buildings,  or  naked  rocks,  re- 
echo much  more  articulately  than  hanging  wood  or 
vales ;  because  in  the  latter  the  voice  is  as  it  were 
entangled,  and  embarrassed  in  the  covert,  and  weak- 
ened in  the  rebound. 

The  true  source  of  this  echo,  as  we  found  by 
various  experiments,  is  the  stone-built,  tiled  hop-kiln 
in  Gally-lane,  which  measures  in  front  40  feet,  and 
from  the  ground  to  the  eaves  12  feet.  The  true 
centrum  phonicuin,  or  just  distance,  is  one  particular 
spot  in  the  King's-field,  in  the  path  to  Nore-hill,  on 
the  very  brink  of  the  steep  balk  above  the  hollow 
cart-way.  In  this  case  there  is  no  choice  of  distance; 
but  the  path,  by  mere  contingency,  happens  to  be 
the  lucky,  the  identical  spot,  because  the  ground 
rises  or  falls  so  immediately,  if  the  speaker  either 
retires  or  advances,  that  his  mouth  would  at  once 
be  above  or  below  the  object. 

*  "A  monster  grim,  tremendous,  vast  and  liigh." 

(Dryden's  Vu'g.  AHit.  iii.  658.) 

91 


We  measured  this  polysyllabical  echo  with  great 
exactness,  and  found  the  distance  to  fall  ver}^  short 


■ 

1 

■ 

r^ 

1 

■ 

1 

1 

n 

mPT^ 

■ 

\ 

1 

^^^ 

■■■ 

I^P^--- 

1 

K^.'  '"'^ 

•^1 

.'"***■;  •  jgiy 

^ 

K|^ 

ita 

h 

'^^ 

^^^1 

H 

i^^mfiHi 

m.^ ....- 

^^      . 

<  Iki-' 

t^«i*Stf 

HH 

A7i  old  hop -kiln. 

of  Dr.  Plot's  rule  for  distinct  articulation  :  for  the 
Doctor,  in  his  history  of  Oxfordshire,  allows  120  feet 
for  the  return  of  each  syllable  distinctly  :  hence  this 
echo,  which  gives  ten  distinct  syllables,  ought  to 
measure  400  yards,  or  120  feet  to  each  syllable  ;  where- 
as our  distance  is  only  258  yards,  or  near  75  feet  to 
each  syllable.     Thus  our  measure  falls  short  of  the 

Doctor's,  as  five  to  eight :  but  then  it  must  be  acknowl- 

92 


edged  that  this  candid  philosopher  was  convinced 
afterwards,  that  some  latitude  must  be  admitted  of 
in  the  distance  of  echoes  according  to  time  and  place. 

When  experiments  of  this  sort  are  making,  it 
should  always  be  remembered  that  weather  and  the 
time  of  day  have  a  vast  influence  on  an  echo ;  for  a 
dull,  heavy,  moist  air  deadens  and  clogs  the  sound  ; 
and  hot  sunshine  renders  the  air  thin  and  weak,  and 
deprives  it  of  all  its  springiness ;  and  a  ruffling  wind 
quite  defeats  the  whole.  In  a  still,  clear,  dewy  even- 
ing the  air  is  most  elastic;  and  perhaps  the  later  the 
hour  the  more  so.  Echo  has  always  been  so  amusing 
to  the  imagination,  that  the  poets  have  personified 
her;  and  in  their  hands  she  has  been  the  occasion  of 
many  a  beautiful  fiction.  Nor  need  the  gravest  man 
be  ashamed  to  appear  taken  with  such  a  phenome- 
non, since  it  may  become  the  subject  of  philosophical 
or  mathematical  inquiries. 

One  should  have  imagined  that  echoes,  if  not 
entertaining,  must  at  least  have  been  harmless  and 
inoffensive;  yet  Virgil  advances  a  strange  notion,  that 
they  are  injurious  to  bees.  After  enumerating  some 
probable  and  reasonable  annoyances,  such  as  pru- 
dent owners  would  wish  far  removed  from  their  bee- 
gardens,  he  adds 

"  —    —   —   —   —   —  aut  ubi  concava  pulsu 

Saxa  sonant,  vocisque  offensa  resultat  imago."* 

*  "  Nor  place  them  where  too  deep  a  water  flows, 

Or  where  the  yew,  their  poisonous  neighbour,  grows  ; 
93 


There  is  a  natural  occurrence  to  be  met  with 
upon  the  highest  part  of  our  downs  in  hot  summer 
days,  which  always  amuses  me  much,  without  giving 
me  any  satisfaction  with  respect  to  the  cause  of  it ; 
and  that  is  a  loud  audible  humming  as  of  bees  in 
the  air,  though  not  one  insect  is  to  be  seen.  This 
sound  is  to  be  heard  distinctly  the  whole  common 
thi'ough,  from  the  Money  dells,  to  my  avenue  gate. 

Any  person  would  suppose  that  a  large  swarm 
of  bees  was  in  motion,  and  playing  about  over  his 
head.     This  noise  was  heard  last  week,  on  June  28th. 

"  Resounds  the  living  surface  of  the  ground, 

Nor  undelightful  is  the  ceaseless  hum 

To  him  who  muses  ...  at  noon." 
"  Thick  in  yon  stream  of  light  a  thousand  ways, 

Upward  and  downward,  thwarting  and  convolved, 

The  quivering  nations  sport." 

This  wild  and  fanciful  assertion  will  hardly  be 
admitted  by  the  philosophers  of  these  days ;  espe- 
cially as  they  all  now  seem  agreed  that  insects  are 
not  furnished  with  any  organs  of  hearing  at  all.  But 
if  it  should  be  urged,  that  though  they  cannot  hear, 
yet  perhaps  they  may  feel  the  repercussion  of  sounds, 
I  grant  it  is  possible  they  may.  Yet  that  these  im- 
pressions are  distasteful  or  hurtful,  I   deny,  because 


Nor  near  the  steaming  stench  of  muddy  ground, 
N^or  hollow  rocks  that  render  hack  the  sound, 
And  double  images  of  voice  rebound^ 

(Dryden's  Virg.  Georg.  iv.  47-50.) 
94 


bees,  in  good  summers,  thrive  well  in  my  outlet, 
where  the  echoes  are  very  strong :  for  this  village  is 
another  Anathoth,  a  place  of  responses  or  echoes. 
Besides,  it  does  not  appear  from  experiment  that 
bees  are  in  any  way  capable  of  being  affected  by 
sounds :  for  I  have  often  tried  my  own  with  a  large 
speaking-trumpet  held  close  to  their  hives,  and  with 
such  an  exertion  of  voice  as  would  have  hailed  a 
ship  at  the  distance  of  a  mile,  and  still  these  insects 
pursued  their  various  employments  undisturbed,  and 
without  showing  the  least  sensibility  or  resentment. 

Some  time  since  its  discovery  this  echo  is  be- 
come totally  silent,  though  the  object,  or  hop-kiln, 
remains:  nor  is  there  any  mystery  in  this  defect ;  for 
the  field  between  is  planted  as  a  hop-garden,  and 
the  voice  of  the  speaker  is  totally  absorbed  and  lost 
among  the  poles  and  entangled  foliage  of  the  hops. 
And  when  the  poles  are  removed  in  autumn  the 
disappointment  is  the  same  ;  because  a  tall  quick-set 
hedge,  nurtured  up  for  the  purpose  of  shelter  to  the 
hop-ground,  interrupts  the  repercussion  of  the  voice: 
so  that  till  those  obstructions  are  removed  no  more 
of  its  garrulity  can  be  expected. 

Should  any  gentleman  of  fortune  think  an  echo 
in  his  park  or  outlet  a  pleasing  incident,  he  might 
build  one  at  little  or  no  expense.  For  whenever  he 
had  occasion  for  a  new  barn,  stable,  dog  kennel,  or 
the  like  structure,  it  would  be  only  needful  to  erect 
this  building  on  the  gentle  declivity  of  a  hill,  with  a 

95 


like  rising  opposite  to  it,  at  a  few  hundred  yards 
distance ;  and  perhaps  success  might  be  the  easier 
insured  could  some  canal,  lake,  or  stream,  intervene. 
From  a  seat  at  the  centriun  pJioniaim  he  and  his 
friends  might  amuse  themselves  sometimes  of  an 
evening  with  the  prattle  of  this  loquacious  nymph  ; 
of  whose  complacency  and  decent  reserve  more  may 
be  said  than  can  with  truth  of  every  individual  of 
her  sex ;  since  she  is  "always  ready  with  her  vocal 
response,  but  never  intrusive  :  " — 

"  —    —    —    —    —    —  quae  nee  retieere  loquenti, 

Nee  prior  ipsa  loqui  didieit  resonabilis  eeho." 

The  classic  reader  will,  I  trust,  pardon  the  follow- 
ing lovely  quotation,  so  finely  describing  echoes,  and 
so  poetically  accounting  for  their  causes  : — 

"  Quae  bene  quom  videas,  rationem  reddere  possis 
Tute  tibi  atque  aliis,  quo  pacto  per  loca  sola 
Saxa  pareis  formas  verborum  ex  ordine  reddant, 
Palanteis  comites  quom  monteis  inter  opacos 
Quaerimus,  et  magna  disperos  voce  ciemus. 
Sex  etiam,  aut  septem  loca  vidi  reddere  voces 
Unam  quom  jaceres  :  ita  colles  collibus  ipsis 
Verba  repulsantes  iterabant  dicta  referre. 
Haec  loca  capripedes  Satyros  Nymphasque  tenere 
Finitimi  tingunt,  et  Faunos  esse  loquuntur  ; 
Quorum  noctivago  strepitu,  ludoque  jocanti 
Adfirmant  volgo  taciturna  silentia  rumpi, 
Chordarumque  sonos  fieri,  dulceisque  querelas, 
Tibia  quas  fundit  digitis  pulsata  canentum  : 
Et  genus  agricolum  lat^  sentiscere,  quom  Pan 
Pinea  semiferi  capitis  velamina  quassans, 
Unco  saepe  labro  calamos  percurrit  hianteis, 
Fistula  silvestrem  ne  cesset  fundere  musam." 

(Lucretius,  lib.  iv.  1.  576.) 
96 


"  This  shows  thee  M^hy,  whilst  men,  through  caves  and  groves 
Call  their  lost  friends,  or  mourn  unhappy  loves. 
The  pitying  rocks,  the  groaning  caves  return 
Their  sad  complaints  again,  and  seem  to  mourn  : 
This  all  observe,  and  I  myself  have  known 
Both  rocks  and  hills  return  six  words  for  one  : 
The  dancing  words  from  hill  to  hill  rebound, 
They  all  receive,  and  all  restore  the  sound  : 
The  vulgar  and  the  neighbours  think,  and  tell. 
That  there  the  Nymphs,  and  Fauns,  and  Satyrs  dwell : 
And  that  their  wanton  sport,  their  loud  delight. 
Breaks  through  the  quiet  silence  of  the  night : 
Their  music's  softest  airs  fill  all  the  plains, 
And  mighty  Pan  delights  the  list'ning  swains : 
The  goat-faced  Pan,  whose  flocks  securely  feed; 
With  long-hung  lip  he  blows  his  oaten  reed  : 
The  horned,  the  half-beast  god,  when  brisk  and  gay, 
With  pine-leaves  crowned,  provokes  the  swains  to  play." 

(Creech's  Translation^ 
Selborne,  Feb.  12,  1778. 


LETTER    LXXXI. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

Among  the  many  singularities  attending  those 
amusing  birds  the  swifts,  I  am  now  confirmed  in  the 
opinion  that  we  have  every  year  the  same  number 
of  pairs  invariably  ;  at  least  the  result  of  my  inquiry 
has  been  exactly  the  same  for  a  long  time  past.  The 
swallows  and  martins  are  so  numerous,  and  so  wide- 
ly distributed  over  the  village,  that  it  is  hardly  pos- 
sible to  re-count  them  ;   while  the  swifts,  though  they 

do  not  all  build  in  the  church,  yet  so  frequently  haunt 
24  97 


it,  and  plav  and  rendezvous  round  it,  that  they  are 
easily  enumerated.  The  number  that  I  constantly 
find  are  eight  pairs;  about  half  of  which  reside  in 
the  church,  and  the  rest  build  in  some  of  the  lowest 
and  meanest  thatched  cottages.  Now  as  these  eight 
pairs,  allowance  being  made  for  accidents,  breed 
yearly  eight  pairs  more,  what  becomes  of  this  annual 
increase  ;  and  what  determines  every  spring  which 
pairs  shall  visit  us,  and  reoccupy  their  ancient  haunts  ? 
Ever  since  1  have  attended  to  that  subject  of 
ornithology,  I  have  always  supposed  that  the  sud- 
den reverse  of  affection,  that  strange  avrLcrropyj],  or 
antipathy,  which  immediatelv  succeeds  in  the  feath- 
ered kind  to  the  most  passionate  fondness,  is  the 
occasion  of  an  equal  dispersion  of  birds  over  the 
face  of  the  earth.  Without  this  provision  one  fa- 
vourite district  would  be  crowded  with  inhabitants, 
while  others  would  be  destitute  and  forsaken.  But 
the  parent  birds  seem  to  maintain  a  jealous  supe- 
rioritv,  and  to  oblige  the  young  to  seek  for  new 
abodes  :  and  the  rivalrv  of  the  males,  in  many  kinds, 
prevents  their  crowding  the  one  on  the  other. 
Whether  the  swallows  and  house-martins  return  in 
the  same  exact  number  annually  is  not  easy  to  say, 
for  reasons  given  above :  but  it  is  apparent,  as  I 
have  remarked  before  in  my  Monographies,  that  the 
numbers  returning  bear  no  manner  of  proportion  to 
the  numbers  retiring. 

Selborne,  May  13,  1778- 

98 


LETTER    LXXXII. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

The  standing-  objection  to  botany  has  always 
been,  that  it  is  a  pursuit  that  amuses  the  fancy  and 
exercises  the  memory,  without  improving  the  mind 
or  advancing  any  real  knowledge:  and,  where  the 
science  is  carried  no  farther  than  a  mere  system- 
atic classification,  the  charge  is  but  too  true.  But 
the  botanist  that  is  desirous  of  wiping  off  this  asper- 
sion should  be  by  no  means  content  with  a  list 
of  names;  he  should  study  plants  philosophically, 
should  investigate  the  laws  of  vegetation,  should 
examine  the  powers  and  virtues  of  efficacious  herbs, 
should  promote  their  cultivation  ;  and  graft  the  gar- 
dener, the  planter,  and  the  husbandman,  on  the  phy- 
tologist.  Not  that  system  is  by  any  means  to  be 
thrown  aside ;  without  system  the  field  of  Nature 
would  be  a  pathless  wilderness :  but  system  should 
be  subservient  to,  not  the  main  object  of,  pursuit. 

Vegetation  is  highly  worthy  of  our  attention ; 
and  in  itself  is  of  the  utmost  consequence  to  man- 
kind, and  productive  of  many  of  the  greatest  com- 
forts and  elegancies  of  life.  To  plants  we  owe  tim- 
ber, bread,  beer,  hone}',  wine,  oil,  linen,  cotton,  &c., 
what  not  only  strengthens  our  hearts,  and  exhila- 
rates our  spirits,  but  what  secures  us  from  inclemen- 
cies of  weather  and    adorns   our  persons.     Man,   in 

99 


his  true  state  of  nature,  seems  to  be  subsisted  by 
spontaneous  vegetation :  in  middle  climes,  where 
grasses  prevail,  he  mixes  some  animal  food  with  the 
produce  of  the  field  and  garden:  and  it  is  towards 
the  polar  extremes  only  that,  like  his  kindred  bears 
and  wolves,  he  gorges  himself  with  flesh  alone,  and 
is  driven  to  what  hunger  has  never  been  known  to 
compel  the  very  beasts,  to  prey  on  his  own  species. 

The  productions  of  vegetation  have  had  a  vast 
influence  on  the  commerce  of  nations,  and  have  been 
the  great  promoters  of  navigation,  as  may  be  seen 
in  the  articles  of  sugar,  tea,  tobacco,  opium,  ginseng, 
betel,  paper,  &c.  As  everj^  climate  has  its  peculiar 
produce,  our  natural  wants  bring  on  a  mutual  inter- 
course ;  so  that  by  means  of  trade  each  distant  part 
is  supplied  with  the  growth  of  every  latitude.  But 
without  the  knowledge  of  plants  and  their  culture 
we  must  have  been  content  with  our  hips  and  haws, 
without  enjoying  the  delicate  fruits  of  India  and  the 
salutiferous  drugs  of  Peru. 

Instead  of  examining  the  minute  distinctions  of 
every  various  species  of  each  obscure  genus,  the 
botanist  should  endeavour  to  make  himself  ac- 
quainted with  those  that  are  useful.  You  shall  see 
a  man  readily  ascertain  every  herb  of  the  field,  yet 
hardly  know  wheat  from  barley,  or  at  least  one  sort 
of  wheat  or  barley  from  another. 

But  of  all  sorts  of  vegetation  the  grasses  seem 
to  be  most  neglected  ;    neither   the    farmer  nor  the 

lOO 


grazier  seems  to  distinguish  the  annual  from  the 
perennial,  the  hardy  from  the  tender,  nor  the  suc- 
culent and  nutritive  from  the  dry  and  juiceless. 

The  study  of  grasses  would  be  of  great  conse- 
quence to  a  northerly  and  grazing  kingdom.  The 
botanist  that  could  improve  the  sward  of  the  district 
where  he  lived  would  be  a  useful  member  of  society: 
to  raise  a  thick  turf  on  a  naked  soil  would  be  worth 
volumes  of  systematic  knowledge ;  and  he  would  be 
the  best  commonwealth's  man  that  could  occasion 
the  growth  of  ''  two  blades  of  grass  where  only  one 
was  seen  before." 

Selborne,  June  2,  1778. 


LETTER    LXXXIII. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

In  a  district  so  diversified  with  such  a  variety  of 
hill  and  dale,  aspects,  and  soils,  it  is  no  wonder  that 
great  choice  of  plants  should  be  found.  Chalks, 
clays,  sands,  sheep-walks  and  downs,  bogs,  heaths, 
woodlands,  and  champaign  fields,  cannot  but  furnish 
an  ample  Flora.  The  deep  rocky  lanes  abound  with 
filices,  and  the  pastures  and  moist  woods  v^\\\v  fungi. 
If  in  any  branch  of  botany  we  may  seem  to  be  want- 
ing, it  must  be  in  the  large  aquatic  plants,  which  are 
not   to    be  expected    on    a  spot  far   removed   from 


rivers,  and  lying  up  amidst  the  hill  country  at  the 
spring-heads.     To  enumerate  all  the  plants  that  have 


A   village  lane. 


been  discovered  within  our  limits  would  be  a  need- 
less work  ;  but  a  short  list  of  the  more  rare,  and  the 
spots  where  they  are  to  be  found,  may  be  neither 
unacceptable  nor  unentertaining  : — 

Stinking   Hellebore   {Hellehonis  fcvtidus).  Bear's  foot  or  Setterwort, 
all   over  the   High-wood   and  Coney-croft-hanger  ;  this  continues  a  great 

I02 


branching  plant  the  winter  through,  blossoming  about  January,  and  is 
very  ornamental  in  shady  walks  and  shrubberies.  The  good  women 
give  the  leaves  powdered  to  children  troubled  with  worms  ;  but  it  is  a 
violent  remedy,  and  ought  to  be  administered  with  caution. 

Green  Hellebore  {ffelleborus  viridis),  in  the  deep  stony  lane  on  the 
left  hand  just  before  the  turning  to  Norton  farm,  and  at  the  top  of  Mid- 
dle Dorton  under  the  hedge  ;  this  plant  dies  down  to  the  ground  early  in 
autumn,  and  springs  again  about  February,  flowering  almost  as  soon  as 
it  appears  above  ground. 

Creeping  Bilberry,  or  Cranberries  (  Vaccinitim  oxycoccos),  in  the  bogs 
of  Bin's-pond. 

Whortle,  or  Bilberries  {Vaccmiufn  myrtillus),  on  the  dry  hillocks  of 
Wolmer  Forest. 

Round-leaved  Sundew  {Djvsera  rotuitdijlora),  and  long-leaved  Sun- 
dew {^Drosera  lojtgifolia),  in  the  bogs  of  Bin's-pond. 

Purple  Comarum  {Co?naruni  palustre),  or  Marsh  Cinquefoil,  in  the 
bogs  of  Bin's-pond. 

Tustan,  or  St.  John's  Wort  {Hypericum  androsiBimcni),  in  the  stony, 
hollow  lanes. 

Lesser  Periwinkle  ( Vinca  7nmo7'),  in  Selborne-hanger  and  Shrub- 
wood. 

Yellow  Monotropa  {Monotropa  hypopithys),  or  Bird's  nest,  in  vSelborne- 
hanger  under  the  shady  beeches,  to  whose  roots  it  seems  to  be  parasit- 
ical, at  the  north-west  end  of  the  Hanger. 

Perfoliated  Yellow-wort  {Chlora  perfoliata,  Blackstonia  perfoliata, 
Hudsonii),  on  the  banks  in  the  King's-field. 

Herb  Paris  {Paris  qtmdrifolia),  True-love,  or  One-berry,  in  the 
Church-litten-coppice. 

Opposite  Golden  Saxifrage  {Chrysosplenium  oppositifoliiwi),  in  the 
dark  and  rocky  hollow  lanes. 

Autumnal  Gentian  {Gentiana  amarella),  or  Fellwort,  on  the  Zig-zag 
and  Hanger. 

Tooth-wort  {Lathrcea  s  qua  mm  arid),  in  the  Church-litten-coppice 
under  some  hazels  near  the  foot-bridge,  in  Trimming's  garden  hedge, 
and  on  the  dry  wall  opposite  Grange-yard. 

Small  Teasel  {Dipsacus  pilosus),  in  the  Short  and  Long  Lithe. 

Narrow-leaved,  or  Wild  Lathyrus  {Lathyriis  sylvestris),  in  the  bushes 
at  the  foot  of  the  Short  Lithe,  near  the  path. 

Ladies'  Traces  {Ophrys  spiralis),  in  the  Long  Lithe,  and  towards  the 
south  corner  of  the  common. 

Birds'  Nest  Ophrys  {Ophrys  nidus  avis),  in  the  Long  Lithe,  under 
T03 


the  shady  beeches  among  the  dead  leaves  ;  iji  Great  Dorton  among  the 
bushes,  and  on  the  Hanger  plentifully. 

Helleborine  i^Serapias  latifolia),  in  the  High-wood  under  the  shady 
beeches. 

Spurge  Laurel  {Daphne  laureola),  in  Selborne-hanger  and  the  High- 
wood. 

The  Mezereon  {Daphne  Mezereuni),  in  Selborne-hanger,  among  the 
shrubs  at  the  south-east  end  above  the  cottages. 

Truffles  {Lycoperdon  tuber),  in  the  Hanger  and  the  High-wood. 

Dwarf  Elder,  Walwort  or  Banewort  {Sanibucus  ebuhis),  among  the 
rubbish  and  ruined  foundations  of  the  Priory. 

Of  all  the  propensities  of  plants  none  seem  more 
strange  than  their  different  periods  of  blossoming. 
Some  produce  their  flowers  in  the  winter,  or  very 
first  dawnings  of  spring ;  many  when  the  spring 
is  established;  some  at  midsummer,  and  some  not 
till  autumn.  When  we  see  the  Hclleborus  foetidiis 
and  Helleboriis  nigcr  blowing  at  Christmas,  the  Helle- 
boriis  hyemalis  in  January,  and  the  Hellebores  viridis 
as  soon  as  ever  it  emerges  out  of  the  ground,  we  do 
not  wonder,  because  they  are  kindred  plants  that 
we  expect  should  keep  pace  the  one  with  the  other. 
But  other  congenerous  vegetables  differ  so  widely 
in  their  time  of  flowering,  that  we  cannot  but  admire. 
I  shall  only  instance  at  present  in  the  Crocus  sativus, 
the  vernal  and  the  autumnal  crocus,  which  have 
such  an  affinity,  that  the  best  botanists  only  make 
them  varieties  of  the  same  genus,  of  which  there  is 
only  one  species ;  not  being  able  to  discern  any  dif- 
ference in  the  corolla,  or  in  the  internal  structure. 
Yet  the    vernal    crocus    expands    its  flowers  by  the 

beginning  of  March  at  farthest,   and   often  even  in 

104 


very  rigorous  weather ;  they  cannot  be  retarded  but 
by  some  violence  offered : — while  the  autumnal 
(the  Saffron)  defies  the  influence  of  the  spring  and 
summer,  and  will  not  blow  till  most  plants  begin  to 
fade  and  run  to  seed.  This  circumstance  is  one  of 
the  wonders  of  the  creation,  little  noticed  because  a 
common  occurrence  :  yet  it  ought  not  to  be  over- 
looked because  it  is  familiar,  since  it  would  be  as 
difhcult  to  be  explained  as  the  most  stupendous  phe- 
nomenon in  nature. 

"  Say,  what  impels,  amidst  surrounding  snow 
Congealed,  the  crocus'  flamy  bud  to  glow  ? 
Say,  what  retards,  amidst  the  summer's  blaze, 
Th'  autumnal  bulb,  till  pale,  declining  days  ? 
The  God  of  Seasons  ;  whose  pervading  power 
Controls  the  sun,  or  sheds  the  fleecy  shower : 
He  bids  each  flower  His  quick'ning  word  obey ; 
Or  to  each  lingering  bloom  enjoins  delay." 

Selborne,  Jidy  3,  1778. 

LETTER    LXXXIV. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

"  Omnibus  animalibus  reliquis  certus  et  uniusmodi,  et  in  suo  cuique 
genere  incessus  est  :  aves  solse  vario  meatu  feruntur,  et  in  terra,  et  in 
acre." — Plin.  Hist.  Nat.  lib.  x.  cap,  38. 

"  All  animals  have  a  certain  definite  and  peculiar  gait  ;  birds  alone 
move  in  a  va7'ied  manner  both  on  the  ground  and  in  the  air." 

A   GOOD   ornithologist   should   be   able  to   distin- 
guish birds  by  their  air  as  well  as  by  their  colours 

105 


and  shape  ;  on  the  ground  as  well  as  on  the  wing-,  and 
in  the  bush  as  well  as  in  the  hand.  For,  though  it 
must  not  be  said  that  every  species  of  birds  has  a 
manner  pecuHar  to  itself,  yet  there  is  somewhat  in 
most  genera  at  least  that  at  first  sight  discriminates 
them,  and  enables  a  judicious  observer  to  pronounce 
upon  them  with  some  certainty.  Put  a  bird  in  mo- 
tion "  and  it  is  truly  betrayed  by  its  gait." 

"  —    —  Et  vera  incessu  patuit  —    —   —   —  " 

Thus  kites  and  buzzards  sail  round  in  circles  with 
wings  expanded  and  motionless  ;  and  it  is  from  their 
gliding  manner  that  the  former  are  still  called  in  the 
north  of  England  and  Scotland  "  gleds,"  from  the 
Saxon  verb  glida?i,  to  glide.  The  kestrel,  or  wind- 
hover, has  a  peculiar  mode  of  hanging  in  the  air  in 
one  place,  his  wings  all  the  while  being  briskly  agi- 
tated. Hen-harriers  fly  low  over  heaths  or  fields  of 
corn,  and  beat  the  ground  regularly  like  a  pointer  or 
setting-dog.  Owls  move  in  a  buoyant  manner,  as 
if  lighter  than  the  air  ;  they  seem  to  want  ballast. 
There  is  a  peculiarity  belonging  to  ravens  that  must 
draw  the  attention  even  of  the  most  incurious— they 
spend  all  their  leisure  time  in  striking  and  cuf^ng 
each  other  on  the  wing  in  a  kind  of  playful  skirmish  ; 
and,  when  they  move  from  one  place  to  another,  fre- 
quently turn  on  their  backs  with  a  loud  croak,  and 
seem  to  be  falling  to  the  ground.  When  this  odd 
gesture  betides  them,  thev  are  scratching  themselves 

io6 


with  one  foot,  and  thus  lose  the  centre  of  gravity. 
Rooks  sometimes  dive  and  tumble  in  a  frolicsome 
manner  ;  crows  and  daws  swag- 
ger in  their  walk  ;  wood- 
peckers fly  volatit  7iiidoso, 
opening  and  closing  their 
wings  at  every  stroke, 
and  so  are  always  rising 
or  falling  in  curves.  All 
of  this  genus  use  their 
tails,  which  incline  down- 
ward, as  a  support  while 
they  run  up  trees.  Parrots, 
like  all  other  hooked-clawed 
birds,  walk  awkwardly,  and 
make  use  of  their  bill  as  a  third 
foot,  climbing  and  descending  with 
ridiculous  caution.  All  the  gallincE 
parade  and  walk  gracefully,  and  run  nimbly  ;  but 
fly  with  difficulty,  with  an  impetuous  whirring,  and 
in  a  straight  line.  Magpies  and  jays  flutter  with 
powerless  wings,  and  make  no  despatch  ;  herons 
seem  encumbered  with  too  much  sail  for  their  light 
bodies  ;  but  these  vast  hollow  wings  are  necessary 
in  carrying  burdens,  such  as  large  fishes,  and  the 
like  ;  pigeons,  and  particularly  the  sort  called  smit- 
ers,  have  a  way  of  clashing  their  wings,  the  one 
against    the    other,    over    their   backs    with    a    loud 

snap  ;   another  variety  called    tumblers,   turn    them- 

107 


A  jackdaw. 


selves  over  in  the  air.  Some  birds  have  move- 
ments peculiar  to  the  season  of  love :  thus  ring- 
doves, though  strong  and  rapid  at  other  times,  yet, 
in  the  spring,  hang  about  on  the  wing  in  a  toying 
and  playful  manner ;  thus  the  cock-snipe,  while 
breeding,  forgetting  his  former  flight,  fans  the  air 
like  the  wind-hover ;  and  the  greenfinch  in  particular 
exhibits  such  languishing  and  faltering  gestures,  as 
to  appear  like  a  wounded  and  dying  bird  ;  the  king- 
fisher darts  along  like  an  arrow  ;  fern-owls,  or  goat- 
suckers, glance 
in  the  dusk  over 
the  tops  of  trees 
like  a  meteor ; 
starlings  as  it 
were  swim  along, 
while  missel- 

thrushes  use  a 
wild  and  desul- 
tory flight  ;  swal- 
lows sweep  over 
the  surface  of 
the  ground  and 
water,  and  dis- 
tinguish them- 
selves by  rapid 
turns  and  quick 
evolutions ;    swifts   dash    round  in  circles ;    and    the 

bank-martin    moves    with    frequent   vacillations  like 

io8 


Skylarks. 


a  butterfly.  Most  of  the  small  birds  fly  by  jerks, 
rising  and  falling  as  they  advance  ;  many  of  them 
hop  ;  but  wagtails  and  larks  walk,  moving  their  legs 
alternately.  Skylarks  rise  and  fall  perpendicularly 
as  they  sing  ;  woodlarks  hang  poised  in  the  air ;  and 
titlarks  rise  and  fall  in  large  curves,  singing  in  their 
descent.  The  white-throat  uses  odd  jerks  and  ges- 
ticulations over  the  tops  of  hedges  and  bushes.  All 
the  duck-kind  waddle  ;  divers,  and  auks,  walk  as  if 
fettered,  and  stand  erect  on  their  tail :  these  are  the 
compedes  of  Linnseus.  Geese  and  cranes,  and  most 
wild-fowl,  move  in  figured  flights,  often  changing 
their  position.  The  secondary  remiges  of  Trmgce, 
wild-ducks,  and  some  others,  are  very  long,  and  give 
their  wings,  when  in  motion,  a  hooked  appearance. 
Dab-chicks,  moor-hens,  and  coots,  fly  erect,  with 
their  legs  hanging  down,  and  hardly  make  any  de- 
spatch ;  the  reason  is  plain,  their  wings  are  placed 
too  forward  out  of  the  true  centre  of  gravity  for 
rapid  progression  ;  as  the  legs  of  auks  and  divers 
are  situated  too  backward. 

Selborne.  Azcg.  7,  1778. 


109 


LETTER    LXXXV. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines    Barrington. 

From  the  motion  of  birds,  the  transition  is  natu- 
ral enough  to  their  notes  and  language,  of  which  I 
shall  say  something.  Not  that  I  would  pretend  to 
understand  their  language,  like  the  vizier  of  the 
Spectator,  who,  by  the  recital  of  a  conversation  which 
passed  between  two  owls,  reclaimed  a  sultan,  before 
delighting  in  conquest  and  devastation  ;  but  I  would 
be  thought  only  to  mean  that  many  of  the  winged 
tribes  have  various  sounds  and  voices  adapted  to 
express  their  various  passions,  wants,  and  feelings; 
such  as  anger,  fear,  love,  hatred,  hunger,  and  the 
like.  All  species  are  not  equally  eloquent  ;  some  are 
copious  and  fluent  as  it  were  in  their  utterance,  while 
others  are  confined  to  a  few  important  sounds  :  no 
bird,  like  the  fish  kind,  is  quite  mute,  though  some 
are  rather  silent.  The  language  of  birds  is  very  an- 
cient, and,  like  other  ancient  modes  of  speech,  very 
elliptical ;  little  is  said,  but  much  is  meant  and  un- 
derstood. 

The  notes  oi  the  eagle-kind  are  shrill  and  pier- 
cinor .  and  about  the  season  of  nidification  much 
diversified,  as  I  have  been  often  assured  by  a  curious 
observer  of  Nature  who  long  resided  at  Gibraltar, 
where  easfles  abound.  The  notes  of  our  hawks  much 
resemble  those  of  the  kins^  of  birds.     Owls  have  very 


expressive  notes  ;  they  hoot  in  a  fine  vocal  sound, 
much  resembling-  the  vox  Jmmana,  and  reducible  by 
a  pitch-pipe  to  a  musical  key.  This  note  seems  to 
express  complacency  and  rivalry  among  the  males  : 
they  use  also  a  quick  call  and  a  horrible  scream  ; 
and  can  snore  and  hiss  when  they  mean  to  menace. 
Ravens,  besides  their  loud  croak,  can  exert  a  deep 
and  solemn  note  that  makes  the  woods  echo  ;  the 
amorous  sound  of  a  crow  is  strange  and  ridiculous ; 
rooks,  in  the  breeding  season,  attempt  sometimes  in 
the  gaiety  of  their  hearts  to  sing,  but  with  no  great 
success  ;  the  parrot-kind  may  have  many  modula- 
tions of  voice,  as  appears  by  their  aptitude  to  learn 
human  sounds  ;  doves  coo  in  an  amorous  and  mourn- 
ful manner,  and  are  emblems  of  despairing  lovers  ; 
the  woodpecker  sets  up  a  sort  of  loud  and  hearty 
laugh  ;  the  fern-owl,  or  goat-sucker,  from  the  dusk 
till  daybreak,  serenades  his  mate  with  the  clattering 
of  castanets.  All  the  tuneful  passeres  express  their 
complacency  by  sweet  modulations,  and  a  variety  of 
melody.  The  swallow,  as  has  been  observed  in  a 
former  letter,  by  a  shrill  alarm  bespeaks  the  atten- 
tion of  the  other  Jiiriindines,  and  bids  them  be  aware 
that  the  hawk  is  at  hand.,  Aquatic  and  gregarious 
birds,  especially  the  nocturnal,  that  shift  their  quar- 
ters in  the  dark,  are  very  noisy  and  loquacious  ;  as 
cranes,  wild-geese,  wild-ducks,  and  the  like  :  their 
perpetual  clamour  prevents  them  from  dispersing 
and  losing  their  companions. 


In  so  extensive  a  subject,  sketches  and  outlines 
are  as  much  as  can  be  expected  ;  for  it  would  be  end- 
less to  instance  in  all  their  infinite  variety  the  notes 
of  the  feathered  nation.  I  shall  therefore  confine  the 
remainder  of  this  letter  to  the  few  domestic  fowls  ot 
our  yards  which  are  most  known,  and  therefore  best 
understood.  And  first  the  peacock,  with  his  gor- 
geous train,  demands  our  attention  ;  but,  like  most  of 
the  gaudy  birds,  his  notes  are  grating  and  shocking 
to  the  ear  :  the  yelling  of  cats,  and  the  braying  of  an 
ass,  are  not  more  disgustful.  The  voice  of  the  goose 
is  trumpet-like,  and  clanking;  and  once  saved  the 
Capitol  at  Rome,  as  grave  historians  assert ;  the  hiss 
also  of  the  gander  is  formidable  and  full  of  menace, 
and  "  protective  of  his  young."  Among  ducks  the 
sexual  distinction  of  voice  is  remarkable  ;  for,  while 
the  quack  of  the  female  is  loud  and  sonorous,  the 
voice  of  the  drake  is  inward  and  harsh,  and  feeble, 
and  scarce  discernible.  The  cock  turkey  struts  and 
gobbles  to  his  mistress  in  a  most  uncouth  manner ; 
he  hath  also  a  pert  and  petulant  note  when  he  attacks 
his  adversary.  When  a  hen  turkey  leads  forth  her 
young  brood  she  keeps  a  watchful  eye  ;  and  if  a  bird 
of  prey  appear,  though  ever  so  high  in  the  air,  the 
careful  mother  announces  the  enemy  with  a  little 
inward  moan,  and  watches  him  with  a  steady  and 
attentive  look;  but,  if  he  approach,  her  note  becomes 
earnest  and  alarming,  and  her  outcries  are  redoubled. 

No  inhabitants  of   the    yard    seem    possessed    of 


112 


such  a  variety  of  expression   and  so  copious  a  lan- 
guage as  common  poultry.     Take  a  chicken  of  four 
or  five  days  old,  and   hold  it  up  to  a  window  where 
there  are  flies,  and  it  will  immediately  seize  its  prey, 
with  little  twitterings  of   complacency  ;    but  if  you 
tender  it  a  wasp  or  a  bee,  at  once  its  note  becomes 
harsh,  and  expressive  of  disapprobation  and  a  sense 
of  danger.     When  a  pullet  is  ready  to  lay  she  inti- 
mates the  event  by  a  joyous  soft  and  easy  note.     Of 
all  the  occurrences  of  their  life  that  of  laying  seems 
to  be  the  most  important ;  for  no  sooner  has  a  hen 
disburdened   herself,   than    she   rushes  forth   with  a 
clamorous  kind  of  joy,  which  the  cock  and  the  rest 
of  his  mistresses  immediately  adopt.     The  tumult  is 
not   confined   to   the   family   concerned,   but  catches 
from  yard  to  yard,  and  spreads  to  every  homestead 
within  hearing,  till  at  last  the  whole  village  is  in  an 
uproar.     As  soon  as  a  hen  becomes  a   mother  her 
new   relation    demands    a    new   language  ;    she   then 
runs  clucking  and  screaming  about,  and  seems  agi- 
tated, as  if  possessed.     The  father  of  the  flock  has 
also  a  considerable  vocabulary  ;  if  he  finds  food,  he 
calls  a  favourite  concubine  to  partake  ;  and  if  a  bird 
of  prey  passes  over,  with  a  warning  voice  he  bids  his 
family  beware.     The  gallant  chanticleer  has,  at  com- 
mand, his  amorous  phrases  and  his  terms  of  defiance. 
But   the   sound    by   which   he   is   best  known   is   his 
crowing ;    by   this  he  has  been  distinguished   in   all 
ages   as   the    countryman's    clock    or   larum,  as    the 
25  113 


watchman  that  proclaims  the  divisions  of  the  night. 
Thus  the  poet  elegantly  styles  him  : 

"  —   —  the  crested  cock,  whose  clarion  sounds 
The  silent  hours," 

A  neighbouring  gentleman  one  summer  had  lost 
most  of  his  chickens  by  a  sparrow-hawk,  that  came 
gliding  down  between  a  faggot  pile  and  the  end  of 


Sparrotv  hawks. 

his  house,  to  the  place  where  the  coops  stood.     The 
owner,  inwardly  vexed  to  see  his  fiock  thus  diminish- 

114 


ing,  hung  a  setting  net  adroitly  between  the  pile  and 
the  house,  into  which  the  caitiff  dashed,  and  was  en- 
tangled. Resentment  suggested  the  law  of  retalia- 
tion ;  he  therefore  clipped  the  hawk's  wings,  cut  off 
his  talons,  and,  fixing  a  cork  on  his  bill,  threw  him 
down  among  the  brood-hens.  Imagination  cannot 
paint  the  scene  that  ensued  ;  the  expressions  that 
fear,  rage,  and  revenge  inspired  were  new%  or  at  least 
such  as  had  been  unnoticed  before :  the  exasperated 
matrons  upbraided,  they  execrated,  they  insulted, 
they  triumphed.  In  a  word,  they  never  desisted 
from  buffeting  their  adversary  till  they  had  torn  him 
in  a  hundred  pieces. 

Selborne,  Sept.  g,  1778. 


LETTER    LXXXVI. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 


monstrent 


Quid  tantum  oceano  properent  se  tingere  soles 
Hyberni :  vel  quae  tardis  mora  noctibus  obstet." 

(ViRG.  Georg.  ii.  477-482.) 

"  How  winter  suns  in  ocean  plunge  so  soon, 
And  what  belates  the  tardy  nights  of  June." 

Gentlemen  who  have  outlets  might  contrive  to 
make    ornament   subservient    to    utility ;    a    pleasing 

115 


eye-trap  might  also  contribute  to  promote  science : 
an  obelisk  in  a  garden  or  park  might  be  both  an  em- 
bellishment and  a  heliotrope. 

Any  person  that  is  curious,  and  enjoys  the  advan, 
tage  of  a  good  horizon,  might,  with  little  trouble- 
make  two  heliotropes;  the  one  for  the  winter,  the 
other  for  the  summer  solstice :  and  these  two  erec- 
tions might  be  constructed  with  very  little  expense  ; 
for  two  pieces  of  timber  framework,  about  ten  or 
twelve  feet  high,  and  four  feet  broad  at  the  base, 
close  lined  with  plank,  would  answer  the  purpose. 

The  erection  for  the  former  should,  if  possible,  be 
placed  within  sight  of  some  window  in  the  common 
sitting  parlour  ;  because  men,  at  that  dead  season  of 
the  year,  are  usually  within  doors  at  the  close  of  the 
day  ;  while  that  for  the  latter  might  be  fixed  for  any 
given  spot  in  the  garden  or  outlet :  whence  the 
owner  might  contemplate,  in  a  fine  summer's  even- 
ing, the  utmost  extent  that  the  sun  makes  to  the 
northward  at  the  season  of  the  longest  days.  Now 
nothing  would  be  necessary  but  to  place  these  two 
objects  with  so  much  exactness,  that  the  westerly 
limb  of  the  sun,  at  setting,  might  but  just  clear  the 
winter  heliotrope  to  the  west  of  it  on  the  shortest ; 
the  whole  disc  of  the  sun  clearing  the  summer  helio- 
trope to  the  north  of  it  at  the  longest  day. 

By  this  simple  expedient  it  would  soon  appear 
that  there  is  no  such  thing,  strictly  speaking,  as  a  sol- 
stice ;  for,  from  the  shortest  day,  the  owner  would, 


n6 


every  clear  evening,  see  the  disc  advancing,  at  its 
setting,  to  the  westward  of  the  object ;  and,  from  the 
longest  day,  observe  the  sun  retiring  backwards 
every  evening  at  its  setting,  towards  the  object  west- 
ward, till,  in  a  few  nights,  it  would  set  quite  behind 
it,  and  so  by  degrees  to  the  west  of  it :  lor  when  the 
sun  comes  near  the  summer  solstice,  the  whole  disc 
of  it  would  at  first  set  behind  the  object;  after  a  time 
the  northern  limb  would  first  appear,  and  so  every 
night  gradually  more,  till  at  length  the  whole  diame- 
ter would  set  northward  of  it  for  about  three  nights  ; 
but  on  the  middle  night  of  the  three,  sensibly  more 
remote  than  the  former  or  following.  When  reced- 
ing from  the  summer  tropic,  it  would  continue  more 
and  more  to  be  hidden  every  night,  till  at  length 
it  would  descend  behind  the  object  again  ;  and  so 
nightly  more  and  more  to  the  westward. 
Selborne. 


H7 


LETTER    LXXXVII. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

"  —   —   —  Mugire  videbis 
Sub  pedibus  terram,  et  descendere  montibus  ornos." 

(ViRG.  A^ii.  iv.  490,  491.) 

'•  Earth  bellows, 
Trees  leave  their  mountains  at  her  potent  call ; 
Beneath  her  footsteps  groans  the  trembling  ball." 

(Pitt.) 

When  I  was  a  boy  I  used  to  read,  with  as- 
tonishment and  implicit  assent,  accounts  in  Baker's 
''  Chronicle  "  of  walking  hills  and  travelling  moun- 
tains. John  Philips,  in  his  ''  Cyder,"  alludes  to  the 
credit  given  to  such  stories  with  a  delicate  but  quaint 
vein  of  humour  peculiar  to  the  author  of  the  "  Splen- 
did Shilling  :  " 

"  I  nor  advise,  nor  reprehend  the  choice 
Of  Marcley  Hill  ;  the  apple  no  where  finds 
A  kinder  mould  ;  yet  'tis  unsafe  to  trust 
Deceitful  ground  :  who  knows  but  that  once  more 
This  mount  may  journey,  and  his  present  site 
Forsaken,  to  thy  neighbour's  bounds  transfer 
Thy  goodly  plants,  affording  matter  strange 
For  law  debates  I  " 

But,  when  I  came  to  consider  better,  I  began  to 
suspect  that  though  our  hills  may  never  have  jour- 
neyed far,  yet  that  the  ends  of  many  of  them  have 
slipped  and  fallen  away  at  distant  periods,  leaving 

the  cliffs  bare  and  abrupt.     This  seems  to  have  been 

T18 


the  case  with  Nore  and  Whetham  Hills ;  and  espe- 
cially with  the  ridge  between  Harteley  Park  and 
Wardleharn,  where  the  ground  has  slid  into  vast 
swellings  and  furrows  ;  and  lies  still  in  such  romantic 
confusion  as  cannot  be  accounted  for  from  any  other 
cause.  A  strange  event,  that  happened  not  long 
since,  justifies  our  suspicions  ;  which,  though  it  befell 
not  within  the  limits  of  this  parish,  yet,  as  it  was 
within  the  hundred  of  Selborne,  and  as  the  circum- 
stances were  singular,  may  fairly  claim  a  place  in 
this  work. 

The  months  of  January  and  February,  in  the  year 
1774,  were  remarkable  for  great  melting  snows  and 
vast  gluts  of  rain  ;  so  that  by  the  end  of  the  latter 
month  the  land-springs,  or  lavants,  began  to  prevail, 
and  to  be  near  as  high  as  in  the  memorable  winter  of 
1764.  The  beginning  of  March  also  went  on  in  the 
same  tenor;  when,  in  the  night  between  the  8th  and 
9th  of  that  month,  a  considerable  part  of  the  great 
woody  hanger  at  Hawkley  was  torn  from  its  place, 
and  fell  down,  leaving  a  high  free-stone  cliff  naked 
and  bare,  and  resembling  the  steep  side  of  a  chalk- 
pit. It  appears  that  this  huge  fragment,  being  per- 
haps sapped  and  undermined  by  waters,  foundered, 
and  was  ingulfed,  going  down  in  a  perpendicular 
direction  ;  for  a  gate  w^hich  stood  in  the  field,  on  the 
top  of  the  hill,  after  sinking  with  its  posts  for  thirty  or 
forty  feet,  remained  in  so  true  and  upright  a  position 

as  to  open  and  shut  with   great   exactness,  just   as   in 

119 


its  first  situation.  Several  oaks  are  still  standing, 
and  in  a  state  of  vegetation,  after  taking  the  same 
desperate  leap.  That  great  part  of  this  prodigious 
mass  was  absorbed  in  some  gulf  below  is  plain  also 
from  the  inclining  ground  at  the  bottom  of  the  hill, 
which  is  free  and  unincumbered  ;  but  would  have 
been  buried  in  heaps  of  rubbish  had  the  fragment 
parted  and  fallen  forward.  About  a  hundred  yards 
from  the  foot  of  this  hanging  coppice  stood  a  cottage 
by  the  side  of  a  lane  ;  and  two  hundred  yards  lower, 
on  the  other  side  of  the  lane,  was  a  farm-house,  in 
which  lived  a  labourer  and  his  family  ;  and,  just  by, 
a  stout  new  barn.  The  cottage  was  inhabited  by 
an  old  woman  and  her  son,  and  his  wife.  These  peo- 
ple in  the  evening,  which  was  very  dark  and  tem- 
pestuous, observed  that  the  brick  floors  of  their 
kitchens  began  to  heave  and  part;  and  that  the 
walls  seemed  to  open,  and  the  roofs  to  crack  :  but 
they  all  agree  that  no  tremor  of  the  ground,  indicat- 
ing an  earthquake,  was  ever  felt ;  only  that  the  wind 
continued  to  make  a  most  tremendous  roaring  in  the 
woods  and  hangers.  The  miserable  inhabitants,  not 
daring  to  go  to  bed,  remained  in  the  utmost  solici- 
tude and  confusion,  expecting  every  moment  to  be 
buried  under  the  ruins  of  their  shattered  edifices. 
When  daylight  came  they  were  at  leisure  to  contem- 
plate the  devastations  of  the  night :  they  then  found 
that  a  deep  rift,  or  chasm,  had  opened  under  their 
houses,  and  torn  them,  as  it  were,  in  two  ;  and  that 


one  end  of  the  barn  had  suffered  in  a  similar  manner; 
that  a  pond  near  the  cottage  had  undergone  a  strange 
reverse,  becoming  deep  at  the  shallow  end,  and  so 
vice  versa  ;  that  many  large  oaks  were  removed  out 
of  their  perpendicular,  some  thrown  down,  and  some 
fallen  into  the  heads  of  neighbouring  trees ;  and 
that  a  gate  was  thrust  forward,  with  its  hedge,  full 
six  feet,  so  as  to  require  a  new  track  to  be  made  to 
it.  From  the  foot  of  the  cliff  the  general  course 
of  the  ground,  which  is  pasture,  inclines  in  a 
moderate  descent  for  half  a  mile,  and  is  interspersed 
with  some  hillocks,  which  were  rifted,  in  every  direc- 
tion, as  well  towards  the  great  woody  hanger  as  from 
it.  In  the  first  pasture  the  deep  clefts  began  :  and 
running  across  the  lane,  and  under  the  buildings, 
made  such  vast  shelves  that  the  road  was  impassable 
for  some  time  ;  and  so  over  to  an  arable  field  on  the 
other  side,  which  was  strangely  torn  and  disordered. 
The  second  pasture  field,  being  more  soft  and 
springy,  was  protruded  forward  without  many  fis- 
sures in  the  turf,  which  was  raised  in  long  ridges  re- 
sembling graves,  lying  at  right  angles  to  the  motion. 
At  the  bottom  of  this  inclosure  the  soil  and  turf  rose 
many  feet  against  some  oaks  that  obstructed  their 
farther  course,  and  terminated  this  awful  commotion. 
The  perpendicular  height  of  the  precipice,  in  gen- 
eral, is  twenty-three  yards ;  the  length  of  the  lapse, 
or  slip,  as  seen  from  the  fields  below,  one  hundred 
and   eighty-one  ;  and  a  partial  fall,  concealed   in   the 


coppice,  extends  seventy  yards  more :  so  that  the 
total  length  of  this  fragment  that  fell  was  two  hun- 
dred and  tifty-one  yards.  About  fifty  acres  of  land 
suffered  from  this  violent  convulsion ;  two  houses 
were  entirely  destroyed  ;  one  end  of  a  new  barn  was 
left  in  ruins,  the  walls  being  cracked  through  the 
very  stones  that  composed  them  ;  a  hanging  coppice 
was  changed  to  a  naked  rock ;  and  some  grass 
grounds  and  an  arable  field  so  broken  and  rifted  by 
the  chasms  as  to  be  rendered,  for  a  time,  neither  fit 
for  the  plough  nor  safe  for  pasturage,  till  consider- 
able labour  and  expense  had  been  bestowed  in  level- 
ling the  surface  and  filling  in  the  gaping  fissures. 

Selborne. 


LETTER    LXXXVIII. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

"  —  —  —  resonant  arbusta     —  —  — ." 

(ViRG.  Eel.  ii.  13.) 

"  The  groves  resound.'" 

There  is  a  steep  abrupt  pasture  field  interspersed 
with  furze  close  to  the  back  of  this  village,  well 
known  by  the  name  of  the  Short  Lithe,  consisting  of 
a  rocky  dry  soil,  and  inclining  to  the  afternoon  sun. 
This  spot  abounds  with  Gryllus  cainpcstris,  or  field- 
cricket,   which,   though    frequent    in    these    parts,   is 


by  no  means  a  common  insect  in  many  other  coun- 
tise. 

As  their  cheerful  summer  cry  cannot  but  draw 
the  attention  of  a  naturalist,  I  have  often  gone  down 
to  examine  the  economy  of  these^rj///^',  and  study  their 
mode  of  life  :  but  they  are  so  shy  and  cautious,  that 
it  is  no  easy  matter  to  get  a  sight  of  them  ;  for,  feel- 
ing a  person's  footsteps  as  he  advances,  they  stop 
short  in  the  midst  of  their  song,  and  retire  backward 
nimbly  into  their  burrows,  where  they  lurk  till  all 
suspicion  of  danger  is  over. 

At  first  we  attempted  to  dig  them  out  with  a 
spade,  but  without  any  great  success ;  for  either  we 
could  not  get  to  the  bottom  of  the  hole,  which  often 
terminated  under  a  great  stone;  or  else,  in  breaking 
up  the  ground,  we  inadvertently  squeezed  the  poor 
insect  to  death.  Out  of  one  so  bruised  we  took  a 
multitude  of  eggs,  which  were  long  and  narrow,  of  a 
yellow  colour,  and  covered  with  a  very  tough  skin. 
By  this  accident  we  learned  to  distinguish  the  male 
from  the  female;  the  former  of  which  is  shining 
black,  with  a  golden  stripe  across  his  shoulders ;  the 
latter  is  more  dusky,  more  capacious  about  the  abdo- 
men, and  carries  a  long  sword-shaped  weapon  at  her 
tail,  which  probably  is  the  instrument  with  which  she 
deposits  her  eggs  in  their  receptacles. 

Where  violent  methods  will  not  avail,  more  gentle 

means  will  often   succeed  ;  and  so  it  proved  in   the 

present  case  ;  for  though  a  spade  be  too  boisterous 

123 


and  rough  an  implement,  a  pliant  stock  of  grass, 
gently  insinuated  into  the  caverns,  will  probe  their 
windings  to  the  bottom,  and  quickly  bring  out  the 
inhabitant ;  and  thus  the  humane  inquirer  may  grat- 
ify his  curiosity  without  injuring  the  object  of  it. 
It  is  remarkable  that,  though  these  insects  are  fur- 
nished with  long  legs  behind,  and  brawny  thighs 
for  leaping,  like  grasshoppers ;  yet,  when  driven 
from  their  holes  they  show  no  activity,  but  crawl 
along  in  a  shiftless  manner,  so  as  easily  to  be  taken: 
and  again,  though  provided  with  a  curious  apparatus 
of  wings,  yet  they  never  exert  them  when  there  seems 
to  be  the  greatest  occasion.  The  males  only  make 
that  thrilling  noise  perhaps  out  of  rivalry  and  emu- 
lation, as  is  the  case  with  many  animals  which  exert 
some  sprightly  note  during  their  breeding  time  :  it 
is  raised  by  a  brisk  friction  of  one  wing  against  the 
other.  They  are  solitary  beings,  living  singly  male 
or  female,  each  as  it  may  happen;  but  there  must  be 
a  time  when  the  sexes  have  some  intercourse,  and 
then  the  wings  may  be  useful  perhaps  during  the 
hours  of  night.  When  the  males  meet  they  will  fight 
fiercely,  as  I  found  by  some  which  I  put  into  the 
crevices  of  a  dry  stone  wall,  where  I  should  have 
been  glad  to  have  made  them  settle.  For  though 
they  seemed  distressed  by  being  taken  out  of  their 
knowledge,  yet  the  first  that  got  possession  of  the 
chinks  would  seize  on  any  that  were  obtruded  upon 

them    with    a    vast    row    of   serrated    fangs.      With 

124 


their  strong-  jaws,  toothed  like  the  shears  of  a  lob- 
ster's claws,  they  perforate  and  round  their  curious 
regular  cells,  having  no  fore  claws  to  dig,  like  the 
mole-cricket.  When  taken  in  hand  I  could  not  but 
wonder  that  they  never  offered  to  defend  themselves, 
though  armed  with  such  formidable  weapons.  Of 
such  herbs  as  grow  before  the  mouths  of  their  bur- 
rows they  eat  indiscriminately  ;  and  on  a  little  plat- 
form, which  they  make  just  by,  they  drop  their 
dung  ;  and  never,  in  the  day  time,  seem  to  stir  more 
than  two  or  three  inches  from  home.  Sitting  in  the 
entrance  of  their  caverns  they  chirp  all  night  as  well 
as  day,  from  the  middle  of  the  month  of  May  to  the 
middle  of  July  ;  and  in  hot  weather,  when  they  are 
most  vigorous,  they  make  the  hills  echo ;  and,  in  the 
stiller  hours  of  darkness,  may  be  heard  to  a  consider- 
able distance.  In  the  beginning  of  the  season  their 
notes  are  more  faint  and  inward  ;  but  become  louder 
as  the  summer  advances,  and  so  die  away  again  by 
degrees. 

Sounds  do  not  always  give  us  pleasure  according 
to  their  sweetness  and  melody  ;  nor  do  harsh  sounds 
always  displease.  We  are  more  apt  to  be  captivated 
or  disgusted  with  the  associations  which  they  pro- 
mote, than  with  the  notes  themselves.  Thus  the 
shrilling  of  the  field-cricket,  though  sharp  and  stridu- 
lous,  yet  marvellously  delights  some  hearers,  filling 
their  minds  with  a  train  of  summer  ideas  of  every- 
thing that  is  rural,  verdurous  and  joyous. 

125 


About  the  loth  of  March  the  crickets  appear  at 
the  mouths  of  their  cells,  which  they  then  open  and 
bore,  and  shape  very  elegantly.  They  cast  their 
skins  in  April,  which  are  then  seen  lying  at  the 
mouths  of  their  holes.  All  that  ever  I  have  seen  at 
that  season  were  in  their  pupa  state,  and  had  only 
the  rudiments  of  wings,  lying  under  a  skin  or  coat, 
which  must  be  cast  before  the  insect  can  arrive  at  its 
perfect  state ;  from  whence  I  should  suppose  that 
the  old  ones  of  last  year  do  not  always  survive  the 
winter.  In  August  their  holes  begin  to  be  obliter- 
ated, and  the  insects  are  seen  no  more  till  spring. 

Not  many  summers  ago  I  endeavoured  to  trans- 
plant a  colony  to  the  terrace  in  my  garden,  by  bor- 
ing deep  holes  in  the  sloping  turf.  The  new  inhab- 
itants stayed  some  time,  and  fed  and  sung;  but 
wandered  away  by  degrees,  and  were  heard  at  a 
farther  distance  every  morning;  so  that  it  appears 
that  in  this  emergency  they  made  use  of  their  wings 
to  return  to  the  spot  from  which  they  were  taken. 

One  of  these  crickets,  when  confined  in  a  paper 
cage  and  set  in  the  sun,  and  supplied  with  plants 
moistened  with  water,  will  feed  and  thrive,  and  be- 
come so  merry  and  loud  as  to  be  irksome  in  the  same 
room  where  a  person  is  sitting :  if  the  plants  are  not 
wetted  it  will  die. 
Selborne. 


126 


LETTER    LXXXIX. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

"  Far  from  all  resort  of  mirth 
Save  the  cricket  on  the  hearth." 

Milton's  //  Penseroso. 

While  many  other  insects  must  be  sought  after 
in   fields,  and   woods,  and  waters,  the  Grylliis  domes- 


Plowing  under  the  Hanger. 

ticus,  or  house-cricket,  resides  altogether  within  our 
dwellings,  intruding  itself  upon  our  notice  whether 


127 


we  will  or  no.  This  species  delights  in  new-built 
houses,  being,  like  the  spider,  pleased  with  the  mois- 
ture of  the  walls ;  and  besides,  the  softness  of  the 
mortar  enables  them  to  burrow  and  mine  between 
the  joints  of  the  bricks  or  stones,  and  to  open  com- 
munications from  one  room  to  another.  They  are 
particularly  fond  of  kitchens  and  bakers'  ovens,  on 
account  of  their  perpetual  warmth. 

Tender  insects  that  live  abroad  either  enjoy  only 
the  short  period  of  one  summer,  or  else  doze  away 
the  cold  uncomfortable  months  in  profound  slum- 
bers ;  but  these,  residing  as  it  were  in  a  torrid  zone, 
are  always  alert  and  merry  :  a  good  Christmas  fire  is 
to  them  like  the  heats  of  the  dog-days.  Though 
they  are  frequently  heard  by  day,  yet  is  their  nat- 
ural time  of  motion  only  in  the  night.  As  soon  as  it 
grows  dusk,  the  chirping  increases,  and  they  come 
running  forth,  ranging  from  the  size  of  a  flea  to  that 
of  their  full  stature.  As  one  should  suppose  from 
the  burning  atmosphere  which  they  inhabit,  they 
are  a  thirsty  race,  and  show  a  great  propensity  for 
liquids,  being  found  frequently  drowned  in  pans  of 
water,  milk,  broth,  or  the  like.  Whatever  is  moist 
they  affect ;  and  therefore  often  gnaw  holes  in  wet 
woollen  stockings  and  aprons  that  are  hung  to  the 
fire:  they  are  the  housewife's  barometer,  foretelling 
her  when  it  will  rain  ;  and  they  prognosticate  some- 
times, she  thinks,  good  or  ill  luck ;  the  death  of  near 

relations,  or  the  approach  of  an  absent  lover.     By 

128 


being  the  constant  companions  of  her  solitary  hours, 
they  naturally  become  the  objects  of  her  supersti- 
tion. These  crickets  are  not  only  very  thirsty,  but 
very  voracious ;  for  they  will  eat  the  scummings  of 
pots,  and  yeast,  salt,  and  crumbs  of  bread  ;  and  any 
kitchen  offal  or  sweepings.  In  the  summer  we  have 
observed  them  to  ^y  out  of  the  windows  when  it 
became  dusk,  and  over  the  neighbouring  roofs. 
This  feat  of  activity  accounts  for  the  sudden  manner 
in  which  they  often  leave  their  haunts,  as  it  does  for 
the  method  by  which  they  come  to  houses  where 
they  were  not  known  before.  It  is  remarkable,  that 
many  sorts  of  insects  seem  never  to  use  their  wings 
but  when  they  have  a  mind  to  shift  their  quarters 
and  settle  new  colonies.  When  in  the  air  they  move 
volatu  undoso,  in  "  waves  or  curves,"  like  w^oodpeck- 
ers,  opening  and  shutting  their  wings  at  every  stroke, 
and  so  are  always  rising  or  sinking. 

When  they  increase  to  a  great  degree,  as  they 
did  once  in  the  house  where  I  am  now  writing,  they 
become  noisome  pests,  flying  into  the  candles,  and 
dashing  into  people's  faces;  but  may  be  blasted  and 
destroyed  by  gunpowder  discharged  into  their  crev- 
ices and  crannies. 

[In  November,  after  the  servants  are  gone  to  bed, 
the  kitchen  hearth  swarms  with  minute  crickets  not 
so  large  as  fleas,  which  must  have  been  lately  hatched, 
so  that  these  domestic  insects,  cherished  by  the  influ- 
ence of  a  constant  and  large  fire,  regard  not  the  sea- 
26  129, 


son  of  the  year,  but  produce  their  young  at  a  time 
when  their  congeners  are  either  dead  or  laid  up  for 
the  winter,  passing  away  the  uncomfortable  months 
in  a  state  of  torpidity. 

When  house-crickets  are  out  and  running  about 
a  room  in  the  night,  if  surprised  by  a  candle,  they 
utter  two  or  three  shrill  notes,  as  if  it  were  a  signal 
to  their  fellows,  that  they  may  escape  to  their  cran- 
nies and  lurking-places  to  avoid  danger.] 

In  families,  at  such  times,  they  are,  like  Pharaoh's 
plague  of  frogs, — in  their  bedchambers,  and  upon 
their  beds,  and  in  their  ovens,  and  in  their  kneading- 
troughs."^  Their  shrilling  noise  is  occasioned  by  a 
brisk  attrition  of  their  wings.  Cats  catch  hearth- 
crickets,  and  play  with  them  as  they  do  with  mice, 
and  then  devour  them.  Crickets  may  be  destroyed, 
like  wasps,  by  phials  half  filled  with  beer,  or  any 
other  liquid,  and  set  in  their  haunts;  for,  being 
always  eager  to  drink,  they  will  crowd  in  till  the 
bottles  are  full.  - 

Selborne. 

*  Exod.  viii.  3. 


130 


LETTER    XC. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

How  diversified  are  the  modes  of  life  not  only  of 
incongruous  but  even  of  congenerous  animals ;  and 
yet  their  specific  distinctions  are  not  more  various 
than  their  propensities.  Thus,  while  the  field-cricket 
delights  in  sunny  dry  banks,  and  the  house-cricket 
rejoices  amidst  the  glowing  heat  of  the  kitchen 
hearth  or  oven,  the  Grylliis  gryllo  talpa  (the  mole- 
cricket)  haunts  moist  meadows,  and  frequents  the 
sides  of  ponds  and  banks  of  streams,  performing  all 
its  functions  in  a  swampy  wet  soil.  With  a  pair  of 
fore-feet  curiously  adapted  to  the  purpose,  it  bur- 
rows and  works  under  ground  like  the  mole,  rais- 
ing a  ridge  as  it  proceeds,  but  seldom  throwing  up 
hillocks. 

As  mole-crickets  often  infest  gardens  by  the  sides 
of  canals,  they  are  unwelcome  guests  to  the  gardener, 
raising  up  ridges  in  their  subterraneous  progress,  and 
rendering  the  walks  unsightly.  If  they  take  to  the 
kitchen  quarters,  they  occasion  great  damage  among 
the  plants  and  roots,  by  destro3'ing  whole  beds  of 
cabbages,  young  legumes,  and  flowers.  When  dug 
out  they  seem  very  slow  and  helpless,  and  make  no 
use  of  their  wings  by  day ;  but  at  night  they  come 
abroad,  and  make  long  excursions,  as  I  have  been 
convinced  by  finding  stragglers,  in  a  morning,  in  im- 

131 


probable  places.  In  fine  weather,  about  the  middle 
of  April,  and  just  at  the  close  of  day,  they  begin  to 
solace  themselves  with  a  low,  dull,  jarring  note,  con- 
tinued for  a  long  time  without  interruption,  and  not 
unlike  the  chattering  of  the  fern-owl,  or  goat-sucker, 
but  more  inward. 

About  the  beginning  of  May  they  lay  their  eggs, 
as  I  was  once  an  eye-witness:  for  a  gardener  at 
a  house  where  I  was  on  a  visit,  happening  to  be 
mowing,  on  the  6th  of  that  month,  by  the  side  of  a 
canal,  his  scythe  struck  too  deep,  pared  off  a  large 
piece  of  turf,  and  laid  open  to  view  a  curious  scene 
of  domestic  economy : 

"  —     —     —     —  ingentem  lato  dedit  ore  fenestram : 
Apparet  domus  intus,  et  atria  longa  patescunt : 
Apparent     —    —     —  penetralia." 

(ViRG.  ^n.  ii.  481-483.) 

"  A  yawning  breach  of  monstrous  size  he  made  : 
The  inmost  house  is  now  to  light  displayed : 
The  admitted  light  with  sudden  lustre  falls 
On  the  long  galleries  and  the  splendid  halls." 

(Dryden.) 

There  were  many  caverns  and  winding  passages 
leading  to  a  kind  of  chamber,  neatly  smoothed  and 
rounded,  and  about  the  size  of  a  moderate  snuff-box. 
Within  this  secret  nursery  were  deposited  near  a 
hundred  eggs  of  a  dirty  yellow  colour,  and  en- 
veloped in  a  tough  skin,  but  too  lately  excluded  to 
contain  any  rudiments  of  young,  being  full  of  a 
viscous  substance.     The  eggs  lay  but  shallow,  and 

132 


within  the  influence  of  the  sun,  just  under  a  little 
heap  of  fresh-moved  mould,  like  that  which  is  raised 
by  ants. 

When  mole-crickets  fly  they  move  cursii  uitdoso, 
rising  and  falling  in  curves,  like  the  other  species 
mentioned  before.  In  different  parts  of  this  king- 
dom people  call  them  fen-crickets,  churr-worms,  and 
eve-churrs,  all  very  apposite  names. 

Anatomists,  who  have  examined  the  intestines  of 
these  insects,  astonish  me  with  their  accounts ;  for 
they  say  that,  from  the  structure,  position,  and  num- 
ber of  their  stomachs,  or  maws,  there  seems  to  be 
good  reason  to  suppose  that  this  and  the  two  former 
species  ruminate  or  chew  the  cud  like  many  quad- 
rupeds ! 
Selborne. 


LETTER    XCI. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

It  is  now  more  than  forty  years  that  I  have  paid 
some  attention  to  the  ornithology  of  this  district, 
without  being  able  to  exhaust  the  subject:  new 
occurrences  still  arise  as  long  as  any  inquiries  are 
kept  alive. 

In  the  last  week  of  last  month  five  of  those  most 
rare  birds,  too  uncommon  to  have  obtained  an  Eng- 
lish   name,   but   known    to  naturalists    by  the  terms 

133 


of  Jiiniantopus,  or  loripcs,  and  CJiaradrius  hiinantopus, 
were  shot  upon  the  verge  of  Frinsham  pond,  a  large 
lake  belonging  to  the  Bishop  of  Winchester,  and 
lying  between  Wolmer  Forest  and  the  town  of 
Farnham,  in  the  county  of  Surrey.  The  pond- 
keeper  says  there  were  three  brace  in  the  flock ; 
but  that  after  he  had  satisfied  his  curiosity,  he  suf- 
fered the  sixth  to  remain  unmolested.  One  of 
these  specimens  I  procured,  and  found  the  length 
of  the  legs  to  be  so  extraordinary,  that,  at  first 
sight,  one  might  have  supposed  the  shanks  had 
been  fastened  on  to  impose  on  the  credulity  of  the 
beholder:  they  were  legs  in  caricatura ;  and  had  we 
seen  such  proportions  on  a  Chinese  or  Japan  screen 
we  should  have  made  large  allowances  for  the  fancy 
of  the  draughtsman.  These  birds  are  of  the  plover 
family,  and  might  with  propriety  be  called  the  stilt 
plovers.  Brisson,  under  that  idea,  gives  them  the 
apposite  name  of  Vechasse.  My  specimen,  when 
drawn  and  stuffed  with  pepper,  weighed  only  four 
ounces  and  a  quarter,  though  the  naked  part  of  the 
thigh  measured  three  inches  and  a  half,  and  the  legs 
four  inches  and  a  half.  Hence  we  may  safely  assert 
that  these  birds  exhibit,  weight  for  inches,  incom- 
parably the  greatest  length  of  legs  of  any  known 
bird.  The  flamingo,  for  instance,  is  one  of  the  most 
long-legged  birds,  and  yet  it  bears  no  manner  of 
proportion  to  the  Jiiinantopiis ;  for  a  cock  flamingo 
weighs,  at  an  average,  about  four  pounds  avoirdu- 

134 


pois  ;  and  his  legs  and  thighs  measure  usually  about 
twenty  inches.  But  four  pounds  are  fifteen  times 
and  a  fraction  more  than  four  ounces  and  one  quar- 
ter ;  and  if  four  ounces  and  a  quarter  have  eight 
inches  of  legs,  four  pounds  must  have  one  hundred 
and  twenty  inches  and  a  fraction  of  legs ;  viz.,  some- 
what more  than  ten  feet ;  such  a  monstrous  propor- 
tion as  the  world  never  saw  !  If  you  should  try  the 
experiment  in  still  larger  birds  the  disparity  would 
still  increase.  It  must  be  matter  of  great  curiosity 
to  see  the  stilt  plover  move;  to  observe  how  it  can 
wield  such  a  length  of  lever  with  such  feeble  mus- 
cles as  the  thighs  seem  to  be  furnished  with.  At 
best  one  should  expect  it  to  be  but  a  bad  walker : 
but  what  adds  to  the  wonder  is,  that  it  has  no  back 
toe.  Now  without  that  steady  prop  to  support  its 
steps  it  must  be  liable,  in  speculation,  to  perpetual 
vacillations,  and  seldom  able  to  preserve  the  true 
centre  of  gravity. 

The  old  name  of  Jiimantopiis  is  taken  from  Pliny ; 
and,  by  an  awkward  metaphor,  implies  that  the  legs 
are  as  slender  and  pliant  as  if  cut  out  of  a  thong  of 
leather.  Neither  Willughby  nor  Ray,  in  all  their 
curious  researches,  either  at  home  or  abroad,  ever 
saw  this  bird.  Mr.  Pennant  never  met  with  it  in 
all  Great  Britain,  but  observed  it  often  in  the  cabi- 
nets of  the  curious  at  Paris.  Hasselquist  says 
that  it  migrates  to  Egypt  in  the  autumn  :  and  a 
most  accurate  observer  of   nature    has    assured    me 

135 


that  he  has  found  it  on  the  banks  of  the  streams  in 
Andalusia. 

Our  writers  record  it  to  have  been  found  only 
twice  in  Great  Britain.  From  all  these  relations  it 
plainly  appears  that  these  long-legged  plovers  are 
birds  of  South  Europe,  and  rarely  visit  our  island ; 
and  when  they  do  are  wanderers  and  stragglers,  and 
impelled  to  make  so  distant  and  northern  an  excur- 
sion from  motives  or  accidents  for  which  we  are  not 
able  to  account.  One  thing  may  fairly  be  deduced, 
that  these  birds  come  over  to  us  from  the  Continent, 
since  nobody  can  suppose  that  a  species  not  noticed 
once  in  an  age,  and  of  such  a  remarkable  make,  can 
constantly  breed  unobserved  in  this  kingdom. 

Selborne,  May  7,   1779. 


LETTER    XCII. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington, 

The  old  Sussex  tortoise,  that  I  have  mentioned  to 
you  so  often,  is  become  my  property.  I  dug  it  out 
of  its  winter  dormitory  in  March  last,  when  it  was 
enough  awakened  to  express  its  resentments  by  hiss- 
ing ;  and  packing  it  in  a  box  with  earth,  carried  it 
eighty  miles  in  post-chaises.     The   rattle  and   hurry 

of  the  journey   so  perfectly  roused   it   that,  when   I 

136 


turned  it  out  on  a  border,  it  walked  twice   down  to 
the  bottom  of  my  garden  ;  however,  in  the  evening, 
the    weather   being    cold,   it 
buried  itself  in  the  loose 
mould,    and    con- 
tinues still  con- 
cealed. 


^^. 


A  successor  to    White's  toTtoise  in  the  garden  at  "  The    Wakes^'^ 

As  it  will  be  under  my  eye,  I  shall  now  have  an 
opportunity  of  enlarging  my  observations  on  its 
mode  of  life,  and  propensities  ;  and  perceive  already 
that  towards  the  time  of  coming  forth,  it  opens  a 
breathing-place  in  the  ground  near  its  head,  requir- 
ing, I  conclude,  a  freer  respiration  as  it  becomes 
more  alive.  This  creature  not  only  goes  under  the 
earth  from  the  middle  of  November  to  the  middle  of 
April,  but  sleeps  great  part  of  the  summer;  for  it 

137 


goes  to  bed  in  the  longest  days  at  four  in  the  after- 
noon, and  often  does  not  stir  in  the  morning  till  late. 
Besides,  it  retires  to  rest  for  every  shower ;  and 
does  not  move  at  all  on  wet  days. 

When  one  reflects  on  the  state  of  this  strange 
beinof,  it  is  a  matter  of  wonder  to  find  that  Provi- 
dence  should  bestow  such  a  profusion  of  days,  such 
a  seeming  waste  of  longevity,  on  a  reptile  that 
appears  to  relish  it  so  little  as  to  squander  more 
than  two-thirds  of  its  existence  in  a  joyless  stupor, 
and  be  lost  to  all  sensation  for  months  together  in 
the  profoundest  of  slumbers. 

While  I  was  writing  this  letter,  a  moist  and  warm 
afternoon,  with  the  thermometer  at  fifty,  brought 
forth  troops  of  shell-snails,  and,  at  the  same  junc- 
ture, the  tortoise  heaved  up  the  mould  and  put 
out  his  head ;  and  the  next  morning  came  forth, 
as  it  were  raised  from  the  dead ;  and  walked  about 
till  four  in  the  afternoon.  This  was  a  curious  coin- 
cidence !  a  very  amusing  occurrence !  to  see  such 
a  similarity  of  feelings  between  the  two  (jyepeoiKocl 
for  so  the  Greeks  call  both  the  shell-snail  and  the 
tortoise. 

Because  we  call  "  the  old  family  tortoise "  an 
abject  reptile,  we  are  too  apt  to  undervalue  his  abili- 
ties, and  depreciate  his  powers  of  instinct.  Yet  he 
is,  as  Mr.  Pope  says  of  his  lord, 

*•  —     —     —  Much  too  wise  to  walk  into  a  well  :  " 
138 


and  has  so  much  discernment  as  not  to  fall  down  a 
ha-ha :  but  to  stop  and  withdraw  from  the  brink 
with  the  readiest  precaution. 

Though  he  loves  warm  weather,  he  avoids  the 
hot  sun ;  because  his  thick  shell  when  once  heated, 
would,  as  the  poet  says  of  solid  armour — ''scald 
with  safety."  He  therefore  spends  the  more  sultry 
hours  under  the  umbrella  of  a  large  cabbage-leaf,  or 
amidst  the  waving  forests  of  an  asparagus-bed. 

But  as  he  avoids  heat  in  the  summer,  so,  in  the 
decline  of  the  year,  he  improves  the  faint  autumnal 
beams  by  getting  within  the  reflection  of  a  fruit- 
wall;  and,  though  he  never  has  read  that  planes 
inclining  to  the  horizon  receive  a  greater  share  of 
warmth,  he  inclines  his  shell,  by  tilting  it  against 
the  wall,  to  collect  and  admit  every  feeble  ray. 

Pitiable  seems  the  condition  of  this  poor  embar- 
rassed reptile :  to  be  cased  in  a  suit  of  ponderous 
armour  which  he  cannot  lay  aside  ;  to  be  imprisoned, 
as  it  were,  within  his  own  shell,  must  preclude,  we 
should  suppose,  all  activity  and  disposition  for  enter- 
prise. Yet  there  is  a  season  of  the  year  (usually  the 
beginning  of  June)  when  his  exertions  are  remark- 
able. He  then  walks  on  tiptoe,  and  is  stirring  by 
five  in  the  morning;  and,  traversing  the  garden, 
examines  every  wicket  and  interstice  in  the  fences, 
through  which  he  will  escape  if  possible ;  and  often 
has  eluded  the  care  of  the  gardener,  and  wandered 
to  some  distant  field.     The  motives  that  impel   him 

139 


to  undertake  these  rambles  seem  to  be  of  the  amor- 
ous kind  :  his  fancy  then  becomes  intent  on  sexual 
attachments,  which  transport  him  beyond  his  usual 
gravity,  and  induce  him  to  forget  for  a  time  his 
ordinary  solemn  deportment."^ 

Summer  birds  are,  this  cold  and  backward  spring, 
unusually  late :  I  have  seen  but  one  swallow  yet. 
This  conformity  with  the  weather  convinces  me  more 
and  more  that  they  sleep  in  the  winter. 

Selborne,  April  11,  1780. 

*  "  We  think  we  see  the  worthy  pastor,"  writes  the  late  Mr.  Brod- 
erip,  "  looking  down  with  the  air  of  the  melancholy  Jaques  on  his 
favourite,  as  those  thoughts  occur  to  him.  It  is  very  possible  that 
Cupid  may  have  been  bestriding  the  reptile.  White's  description  looks 
like  the  restlessness  of  passion  :  but  the  love  of  liberty,  and  not  im- 
probably an  annual  migratory  impulse  to  search  for  fresh  pasture,  may 
have  been  the  prevailing  motive.  The  tenacity  of  life  with  which  the 
testudinata  are  gifted  is  hardly  credible.  Rede's  operations  would  have 
been  instant  death  to  any  more  warm-blooded  animal.  He  opened  the 
skull  of  a  land  tortoise,  and  removing  every  particle  of  brain,  cleaned 
the  cavity  out.  It  still  groped  its  way  about  freely,  for  with  the  brain 
its  sight  departed  ;  but  it  lived  from  November  till  May.  After  many 
other  equally  cruel  experiments,  one  November  he  cut  off  the  head  of  a 
large  tortoise,  and  it  lived  for  twenty-three  days.  But,  retiring  within 
its  shell,  it  has  its  privileges. 

"  The  tortoise  securely  from  danger  does  well 
When  he  tucks  up  his  head  and  his  tail  in  his  shell." 


140 


Burning  an  old  hedge  under  the  Hanger. 


LETTER    XCIII. 
To  Thomas  Pennant,  Esq. 

A  PAIR  of  honey-buzzards — Biiteo  apivorus,  Linn., 
sive  Vespivortis,  Rail — built  them  a  large  shallow  nest, 
composed  of  twigs,  and  lined  with  dead  beechen 
leaves,  upon  a  tall  slender  beech  near  the  middle  of 
Selborne  Hanger,  in  the  summer  of  1780.  In  the 
middle  of  the  month  of  June  a  bold  boy  climbed  this 
tree,  though  standing  on  so  steep  and  dizzy  a  situa- 
tion, and  brought  down  an  ^g^,  the  only  one  in  the 
nest,  which  had  been  sat  on  for  some  time,  and  con- 
tained the  embryo  of  a  young  bird.  The  Qg^  was 
smaller,  and  not  so  round  as  those  of  the  common 
buzzard  ;  was  dotted  at  each  end  with  small  red 
spots,  and  surrounded  in  the  middle  with  a  broad 
bloody  zone. 

The  hen-bird  was  shot,  and  answered  exactly  to 
Mr.  Ray's  description  of  that  species ;  had  a  black 
cere,  short  thick  legs,  and  a  long  tail.  When  on  the 
wing  this  species  may  be  easily  distinguished  from 
the  common  buzzard  by  its  hawk-like  appearance, 
small  head,  wings  not  so  blunt,  and  longer  tail.  This 
specimen  contained  in  its  craw  some  limbs  of  frogs 
and  many  grey  snails  without  shells.  The  irides  of 
the  eyes  of  this  bird  were  of  a  beautiful  bright  yel- 
low colour. 

About  the  loth  of  July  in  the  same  summer  a  pair 
141 


of  sparrow-hawks  bred  in  an  old  crow's  nest  on  a  low 

beech  in  the  same  hanger ;  and  as  their  brood,  which 

was    numerous,    began    to    grow 

up,    became    so    daring    and 

ravenous,     that     they    were 

a   terror  to  all  the  dames 

in    the     village    that    had 

chickens      or       ducklings 

under  their   care.     A  boy 

climbed  the  tree,  and  found 

the    young  so    fledged    that 

they    all    escaped    from    him ; 

but    discovered     that    a    good 

house    had    been    kept :    the  larder  was  well  stored 

with    provisions  ;    for    he    brought    down    a   young 

blackbird,   jay,    and    house-martin,    all    clean-picked, 

and  some  half  devoured.      The  old    bird   had   been 

observed  to  make  sad  havoc  for  some  days  among 

the  new-flown    swallows   and   martins,  which,  being 

but  lately  out  of  their  nests,  had  not  acquired  those 

powers    and    command    of    wing   that   enable   them 

when  more  mature  to  set  such  enemies  at  defiance. 


A  Jay. 


142 


LETTER    XCIV. 
To  Thomas  Pennant,  Esq. 

Every  incident  that  occasions  a  renewal  of  our 
correspondence  will  ever  be  pleasing-  and  agreeable 
to  me. 

As  to  the  wild  wood-pigeon,  the  cEuas,  or  vinago, 
of  Ray,  I  am  much  of  your  mind  ;  and  see  no  reason 
for  making  it  the  origin  of  the  common  house-dove: 
but  suppose  those  that  have  advanced  that  opinion 
may  have  been  misled  by  another  appellation,  often 
given  to  the  cenas,  which  is  that  of  stock-dove. 

Unless  the  stock-dove  in  the  winter  varies  greatly 
in  manners  from  itself  in  summer,  no  species  seems 
more  unlikely  to  be  domesticated,  and  to  make  a 
house-dove.  We  very  rarely  see  the  latter  settle  on 
trees  at  all,  nor  does  it  ever  haunt  the  woods;  but 
the  former,  as  long  as  it  stays  with  us — from  Novem- 
ber perhaps  to  February — lives  the  same  wild  life 
with  the  ring-dove,  Paluinbiis  torqiiatiis ;  frequents 
coppices  and  groves,  supports  itself  chiefly  by  mast, 
and  delights  to  roost  in  the  tallest  beeches.  Could  it 
be  known  in  what  manner  stock-doves  build,  the 
doubt  would  be  settled  with  me  at  once,  provided 
they  construct  their  nests  on  trees,  like  the  ring-dove, 
as  I  much  suspect  they  do. 

You  received,  you  say,  last  spring  a  stock-dove 

from  Sussex,  and  are  informed  that  the)'  sometimes 
27  143 


breed  in  that  county.  But  why  did  not  your  cor- 
respondent determine  the  place  of  its  nidification, 
whether  on  rocks,  cliffs,  or  trees?  If  he  was  not  an 
adroit  ornithologist  I  should  doubt  the  fact,  because 
people  with  us  perpetually  confound  the  stock-dove 
with  the  ring--dove. 

For  my  own  part  I  readily  concur  with  you  in 
supposing  that  house-doves  are  derived  from  the 
small  blue-rock  pigeon,  Coliiniba  livia,  for  many  rea- 
sons. In  the  first  place  the  wild  stock-dove  is  mani- 
festly larger  than  the  common  house-dove,  against 
the  usual  rule  of  domestication,  which  generally 
enlarges  the  breed.  Again,  those  two  remarkable 
black  spots  on  the  rcmiges  of  each  wing  of  the  stock- 
dove, which  are  so  characteristic  of  the  species,  would 
not,  one  should  think,  be  totally  lost  by  its  being  re- 
claimed ;  but  would  often  break  out  among  its  de- 
scendants. But  what  is  worth  a  hundred  arguments 
is,  the  instance  you  give  in  Sir  Roger  Mostyn's  house- 
doves  in  Caernarvonshire ;  which,  though  tempted 
by  plenty  of  food  and  gentle  treatment,  can  never  be 
prevailed  on  to  inhabit  their  cote  for  any  time ;  but 
as  soon  as  they  begin  to  breed,  betake  themselves  to 
the  fastnesses  of  Ormshead,  and  deposit  their  young 
in  safety  amidst  the  inaccessible  caverns  and  preci- 
pices of  that  stupendous  promontory.  ''You  may 
drive  nature  out  with  a  pitchfork,  but  she  will  always 
return  :  " 

"  Naturam  expellas  furca    .    .    .    tamen  usque  recurret." 
144 


I  have  consulted  a  sportsman,  now  in  his  seventy- 
eighth  year,  who  tells  me  that  fifty  or  sixty  years 
back,  when  the  beechen  woods  were  much  more  ex- 
tensive than  at  present,  the  number  of  wood-pigeons 
was  astonishing  ;  that  he  has  often  killed  near  twenty 
in  a  day  ;  and  that  with  a  long  wild-fowl  piece  he  has 
shot  seven  or  eight  at  a  time  on  the  wing  as  they 
came  wheeling  over  his  head  ;  he  moreover  adds, 
which  I  was  not  aware  of,  that  often  there  were 
among  them  little  parties  of  small  blue  doves,  which 
he  calls  rockiers.  The  food  of  these  numberless  emi- 
grants was  beech-mast  and  some  acorns ;  and  partic- 
ularly barley,  which  they  collected  in  the  stubbles. 
But  of  late  years,  since  the  vast  increase  of  turnips, 
that  vegetable  has  furnished  a  great  part  of  their  sup- 
port in  hard  weather  ;  and  the  holes  they  pick  in 
these  roots  greatly  damage  the  crop.  From  this  food 
their  flesh  has  contracted  a  rancidness  which  occa- 
sions them  to  be  rejected  by  nicer  judges  of  eating, 
who  thought  them  before  a  delicate  dish.  They  were 
shot  not  only  as  they  were  feeding  in  the  fields,  and 
especially  in  snowy  weather,  but  also  at  the  close  of 
the  evening,  by  men  who  lay  in  ambush  among  the 
woods  and  groves,  to  kill  them  as  they  came  in  to 
roost.  These  are  the  principal  circumstances  relat- 
ing to  this  wonderful  internal  migration,  which  with 
us  takes  place  towards  the  end  of  November,  and 
ceases  early  in  the  spring.  Last  winter  we  had  in 
Selborne  high-wood  about  a  hundred  of  these  doves ; 

^45 


but  in  former  times  the  flocks  were  so  vast,  not  only 
with  us  but  all  the  district  round,  that  on  mornings 
and  evenings  they  traversed  the  air,  like  rooks,  in 
strings,  reaching  for  a  mile  together.  When  they 
thus  rendezvoused  here  by  thousands,  if  they  hap- 
pened to  be  suddenly  roused  from  their  roost-trees 
on  an  evening, 

"  Their  rising  all  at  once  was  like  the  sound 
Of  thunder  heard  remote." 

It  will  by  no  means  be  foreign  to  the  present  pur- 
pose to  add,  that  I  had  a  relation  in  this  neighbour- 
hood who  made  it  a  practice,  for  a  time,  whenever 
he  could  procure  the  eggs  of  a  ring-dove,  to  place 
them  under  a  pair  of  doves  that  were  sitting  in  his 
own  pigeon-house  ;  hoping  thereby,  if  he  could  bring 
about  a  coalition,  to  enlarge  his  breed,  and  teach  his 
own  doves  to  beat  out  into  the  woods  and  to  sup- 
port themselves  by  mast ;  the  plan  was  plausible, 
but  something  always  interrupted  the  success  ;  for 
though  the  birds  were  usually  hatched,  and  some- 
times grew  to  half  their  size,  yet  none  ever  arrived  at 
maturity.  I  myself  have  seen  these  foundlings  in 
their  nest  displaying  a  strange  ferocity  of  nature,  so 
as  scarcely  to  bear  to  be  looked  at,  and  snapping  with 
their  bills  by  way  of  menace.  In  short,  they  always 
died,  perhaps  from  want  of  proper  sustenance  ;  but 
the  owner  thought  that  by  their  fierce  and  wild  de- 
meanour they  frighted  their  foster-mothers,  and  so 

were  starved. 

146 


Virgil,  as  a  familiar  occurrence,  by  way  of  simile, 
describes  a  dove  haunting  the  cavern  of  a  rock  in 
such  engaging  numbers,  that  I  cannot  refrain  from 
quoting  the  passage  : — 

"  Qualis  spelunca  subito  commota  Columba, 
Cui  domus,  et  dulces  latebroso  in  pumice  nidi, 

•    Fertul  in  arva  volans,  plausumque  exterrita  pennis 
Dat  tecto  ingentem — mox  aere  lapsa  quieto, 
Radit  iter  liquidum,  celeres  neque  commovet  alas." 
(ViRG.  ^n.  V.  213-217.) 

"  As  when  a  dove  her  rocky  hold  forsakes, 
Roused,  in  a  fright  her  sounding  wings  she  shakes  ; 
The  cavern  rings  with  clattering  : — out  she  flies, 
And  leaves  her  callow  care,  and  cleaves  the  skies  ; 
At  first  she  flutters  : — but  at  length  she  springs 
To  smoother  flight,  and  shoots  upon  her  wings." 

(Dryden's  Translation.) 
Selborne,  N'ov.  30,  1780. 


LETTER    XCV. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

I  HAVE  now  read  your  miscellanies  through  with 
much  care  and  satisfaction  ;  and  am  to  return  you 
my  best  thanks  for  the  honourable  mention  made  in 
them  of  me  as  a  naturalist,  which  I  wish  I  may 
deserve. 

In  some  former  letters  I  expressed  my  suspicions 

that  many  of  the  house-martins  do  not  depart  in  the 

winter  far  from  this  village.     I  therefore  determined 

147 


to  make  some  search  about  the  south-east  end  of  the 
hill,  where  I  imagined  they  might  slumber  out  the 
uncomfortable  months  of  winter.  But  supposing 
that  the  examination  would  be  made  to  the  best  ad- 
vantage in  the  spring,  and  observing  that  no  martins 
had  appeared  by  the  nth  of  April  last,  on  that  day  I 
employed  some  men  to  explore  the  shrubs  and  cavi- 
ties of  the  suspected  spot.  The  persons  took  pains, 
but  without  any  success ;  however,  a  remarkable  in- 
cident occurred  in  the  midst  of  our  pursuit — while 
the  labourers  were  at  work  a  house-martin,  the  first 
that  had  been  seen  this  year,  came  down  the  village 
in  the  sight  of  several  people,  and  went  at  once  into 
a  nest,  where  it  stayed  a  short  time,  and  then  flew 
over  the  houses ;  for  some  days  after  no  martins 
were  observed,  not  till  the  i6th  of  April,  and  then 
only  a  pair.  Martins  in  general  were  remarkably 
late  this  year. 

"  —     —     —     —  daffodils 
That  come  before  the  swallow  dares,  and  take 
The  winds  of  March  with  beauty." 

Selborne,  Sept.  3,  1781. 


148 


LETTER   XCVI. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

I  HAVE  just  met  with  a  circumstance  respecting- 
swifts  which  furnishes  an  exception  to  the  whole 
tenor  of  my  observations  ever  since  I  have  bestowed 
any  attention  on  that  species  of  Jiinindines.  Our 
swifts,  in  general,  withdrew  this  year  about  the  first 
day  of  August,  all  save  one  pair,  which  in  two  or 
three  days  was  reduced  to  a  single  bird.  The  per- 
severance of  this  individual  made  me  suspect  that 
the  strongest  of  motives,  that  of  an  attachment  to 
her  young,  could  alone  occasion  so  late  a  stay.  I 
watched  therefore  till  the  24th  of  August,  and  then 
discovered  that  under  the  eaves  of  the  church  she 
attended  upon  two  young,  which  were  fledged,  and 
now  put  out  their  white  chins  from  a  crevice.  These 
remained  till  the  27th,  looking  more  alert  every  day, 
and  seeming  to  long  to  be  on  the  wing.  After  this 
day  they  were  missing  at  once ;  nor  could  I  ever 
observe  them  with  their  dam  coursing  round  the 
church  in  the  act  of  learning  to  fiy,  as  the  first  broods 
evidently  do.  On  the  31st  I  caused  the  eaves  to  be 
searched ;  but  we  found  in  the  nest  only  two  callow, 
dead,  stinking  swifts,  on  which  a  second  nest  had 
been  formed.  This  double  nest  was  full  of  the  black 
shining  cases  of  the  Hippobosccc  hiriindiiiis. 

The  following  remarks  on  this  unusual  incident 
149 


are  obvious.  The  first  is,  that  though  it  uiay  be  dis- 
agreeable to  swifts  to  remain  beyond  the  beginning 
of  August,  yet  that  they  can  subsist  longer  is  unde- 
niable. The  second  is,  that  this  uncommon  event,  as 
it  was  owing  to  the  loss  of  the  first  brood,  so  it  cor- 
roborates my  former  remark,  that  swifts  breed  regu- 
larly but  once  ;  since,  was  the  contrary  the  case,  the 
occurrence  above  could  neither  be  new  nor  rare. 

P.  S. — One  swift  was  seen  at  Lyndon,  in  the 
county  of  Rutland,  in  1780,  so  late  as  the  3rd  of 
September. 

Selborne,  Sept.  g,  1781. 


LETTER   XCVIL 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

As  I  have  sometimes  known  you  make  inquiries 
about  several  kinds  of  insects,  J  shall  here  send  you 
an  account  of  one  sort  which  1  little  expected  to 
have  found  in  this  kingdom.  I  have  often  observed 
that  one  particular  part  of  a  vine  growing  on  the 
walls  of  my  house  was  covered  in  the  autumn  with 
a  black  dust-like  appearance,  on  which  the  ffies  fed 
eagerly  ;  and  that  the  shoots  and  leaves  thus  affected 
did  not  thrive  ;  nor  did  the  fruit  ripen.  To  this  sub- 
stance I  applied  my  glasses;  but  could  not  discover 
that  it  had  anything  to  do  with  animal  life,  as  I  at 

150 


first  expe  ted :  but,  upon  a  closer  examination  be- 
hind the  larger  boughs,  we  were  surprised  to  find 
that  they  were  coated  over  with  husky  shells,  from 
whose  sides  proceeded  a  cotton-like  substance,  sur- 
rounding a  multitude  of  eggs.  This  curious  and  un- 
common production  put  me  upon  recollecting  what 
I  have  heard  and  read  concerning  the  Cocctis  vitis 
viniferce  of  Linngeus,  which,  in  the  south  of  Europe, 
infests  many  vines,  and  is  a  horrid  and  loathsome 
pest.  As  soon  as  I  had  turned  to  the  accounts  given 
of  this  insect,  I  saw  at  once  that  it  swarmed  on  my 
vine ;  and  did  not  appear  to  have  been  at  all  checked 
by  the  preceding  winter,  which  had  been  uncommon- 
ly severe. 

Not  being  then  at  all  aware  that  it  had  anything 
to  do  with  England,  1  was  much  inclined  to  think 
that  it  came  from  Gibraltar  among  the  many  boxes 
and  packages  of  plants  and  birds  which  I  had  former- 
ly received  from  thence  ;  and  especially  as  the  vine 
infested  grew  immediately  under  my  study  window, 
where  I  usually  kept  my  specimens.  True  it  is  that 
I  had  received  nothing  from  thence  for  some  years  ; 
but  as  insects  are,  we  know,  conveyed  from  one 
country  to  another  in  a  very  unexpected  manner, 
and  have  a  wonderful  power  of  maintaining  their 
existence  till  they  fall  into  a  nidus  proper  for  their 
support  and  increase,  I  cannot  but  suspect  still  that 
these  cocci  came  to  me  originally  from  Andalusia. 
Yet,  all   the  while,  candour  obliges    me    to    confess 

151 


that  Mr.  Lightfoot  has  written  me  word  that  he 
once,  and  but  once,  saw  these  insects  on  a  vine  at 
Weymouth  in  Dorsetshire;  which,  it  is  here  to  be 
observed,  is  a  sea-port  town,  to  which  the  coccus 
might  be  conveyed  by  shipping. 

As  many  of  my  readers  may  possibly  never  have 
heard  of  this  strange  and  unusual  insect,  I  shall  here 
transcribe  a  passage  from  a  natural  history  of  Gi- 
braltar, written  by  the  Reverend  John  White,  late 
vicar  of  Blackburn  in  Lancashire,  but  not  yet  pub- 
lished:— 

"  In  the  year  1770  a  vine  which  grew  on  the  east 
side  of  my  house,  and  which  had  produced  the  finest 
crops  of  grapes  for  years  past,  was  suddenly  over- 
spread on  all  the  woody  branches  with  large  lumps 
of  a  white  fibrous  substance  resembling  spiders' 
webs,  or  rather  raw  cotton.  It  was  of  a  very  clam- 
my quality,  sticking  fast  to  everything  that  touched 
it,  and  capable  of  being  spun  into  long  threads.  At 
first  I  suspected  it  to  be  the  product  of  spiders,  but 
could  find  none.  Nothing  was  to  be  seen  connected 
with  it  but  many  brown  oval  husky  shells,  which  by 
no  means  looked  like  insects,  but  rather  resembled 
bits  of  the  dry  bark  of  the  vine.  The  tree  had  a 
plentiful  crop  of  grapes  set,  when  this  pest  appeared 
upon  it;  but  the  fruit  was  manifestly  injured  by 
this  foul  incumbrance.  It  remained  all  the  summer, 
still  increasing,  and  loaded  the  woody  and  bearing 
branches  to  a  vast  degree.     I  often  pulled  off  great 

152 


quantities  by  handfuls:  but  it  was  so  slimy  and  tena- 
cious that  it  could  by  no  means  be  cleared.  The 
grapes  never  filled  to  their  natural  perfection,  but 
turned  watery  and  vapid.  Upon  perusing  the  works 
afterwards  of  M.  de  Reaumur,  I  found  this  matter 
perfectly  described  and  accounted  for.  Those  husky 
shells,  which  I  had  observed,  were  no  other  than  the 
female  coccus,  from  whose  sides  this  cotton-like  sub- 
stance exudes,  and  serves  as  a  covering  and  security 
for  their  eggs." 

To  this  account  I  think  proper  to  add,  that, 
though  the  female  cocci  are  stationary,  and  seldom 
remove  from  the  place  to  which  they  stick,  yet  the 
male  is  a  winged  insect;  and  that  the  black  dust 
which  I  saw  was  undoubtedly  the  excrement  of  the 
females,  which  is  eaten  by  ants  as  well  as  flies. 
Though  the  utmost  severity  of  our  winter  did  not 
destroy  these  insects,  yet  the  attention  of  the  gar- 
dener in  a  summer  or  two  has  entirely  relieved  my 
vine  from  this  filthy  annoyance. 

As  we  have  remarked  above  that  insects  are  often 
conveyed  from  one  country  to  another  in  a  very  un- 
accountable manner,  I  shall  here  mention  an  emisfra- 
tion  of  small  aphides,  which  was  observed  in  the 
village  of  Selborne  no  longer  ago  than  August  the 
ist,  1785. 

At  about  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of  that 
day,  w^hich  was  very  hot,  the  people  of  this  village 
were  surprised   by  a  shower  of  apJiidcs,  or  smother- 

153 


flies,  which  fell  in  these  parts.  Those  that  were 
walking  in  the  streets  at  that  juncture  found  them- 
selves covered  with  these  insects,  which  settled  also 
on  the  hedges  and  gardens,  blackening  all  the  vege- 
tables where  they  alighted.  My  annuals  were  dis- 
coloured with  them,  and  the  stalks  of  a  bed  of  onions 
were  quite  coated  over  for  six  days  after.  These 
armies  were  then,  no  doubt,  in  a  state  of  emigration, 
and  shifting  their  quarters ;  and  might  have  come,  as 
far  as  we  know,  from  the  great  hop-plantations  of 
Kent  or  Sussex,  the  wind  being  all  that  day  in  the 
easterly  quarter.  They  were  observed  at  the  same 
time  in  great  clouds  about  Farnham,  and  all  along 
the  vale  from  Farnham  to  Alton. "^ 

Selborne,  March  g,  1775. 


LETTER    XCVIII.t 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

When  I  happen  to  visit  a  family  where  gold  and 
silver  fishes  are  kept  in  a  glass  bowl  I  am  always 
pleased  with  the  occurrence,  because  it  offers  me  an 
opportunity  of  observing  the  actions  and  propensities 

*  For  various  methods  by  which  several  insects  shift  their  quarters, 
see  Derham's  "  Physico-Theology." 

f  First  published  in  the  Gentletnans  Magazine  for   1786,  under  the 
signature  V. 

154 


A   modern  observer  of  nature. 


of  those  beings  with  whom  I  can  be  little  acquainted 
in  their  natural  state.  Not  long  since  I  spent  a  fort- 
night at  the  house  of  a  friend  where  there  was  such  a 
vivarium,  to  which  I  paid  no  small  attention,  taking 
every  occasion  to  remark  what  passed  within  its 
narrow  limits.  It  was  here  that  I  first  observed  the 
manner  in  which  fishes  die.  As  soon  as  the  creature 
sickens,  the  head  sinks  lower  and  lower,  and  it  stands 
as  it  were  on  its  head  ;  till,  getting  weaker,  and  los- 
ing all  poise,  the  tail  turns  over,  and  at  last  it  floats 
on  the  surface  of  the  water  with  its  belly  uppermost. 
The  reason  why  fishes,  when  dead,  swim  in  that 
manner  is  very  obvious  ;  because,  when  the  body  is 
no  longer  balanced  by  the  fins  of  the  belly,  the  broad 
muscular  back  preponderates  by  its  own  gravity, 
and  turns  the  belly  uppermost,  as  lighter  from  its 
being  a  cavity,  and  because  it  contains  the  swimming- 
bladders,  which  contribute  to  render  it  buoyant. 
Some  that  delight  in  gold  and  silver  fishes  have 
adopted  a  notion  that  they  need  no  aliment.  True  it 
is  that  they  will  subsist  for  a  long  time  without  any 
apparent  food  but  what  they  can  collect  from  pure 
water  frequently  changed  ;  yet  they  must  draw  some 
support  from  animalcula,  and  other  nourishments 
supplied  by  the  water;  because,  though  they  seem  to 
eat  nothing,  yet  the  consequences  of  eating  often 
drop  from  them.  That  they  are  best  pleased  with 
such  jejune  diet  may  easily  be  confuted,  since  if  you 
toss  them    crumbs   they  will  seize  them  with  great 

155 


readiness,  not  to  say  greediness ;  however,  bread 
should  be  given  sparingly,  lest,  turning  sour,  it 
corrupt  the  water.  They  will  also  feed  on  the 
water-plant  called  Icinna  (duck's  meat),  and  also  on 
small  fry. 

When  they  want  to  move  a  little  they  gently 
protrude  themselves  with  \\\q\y pi)incB pcctoralcs ;  but 
it  is  with  their  strong  muscular  tails  only  that  they 
and  all  fishes  shoot  along  with  such  inconceivable 
rapidity.  It  has  been  said  that  the  eyes  of  fishes  are 
immovable;  but  these  apparently  turn  them  forward 
or  backward  in  their  sockets  as  their  occasions  re- 
quire. They  take  little  notice  of  a  lighted  candle, 
though  applied  close  to  their  heads,  but  flounce  and 
seem  much  frightened  by  a  sudden  stroke  of  the 
hand  against  the  support  whereon  the  bowl  is  hung; 
especially  when  they  have  been  motionless,  and  are 
perhaps  asleep.  As  fishes  have  no  eyelids,  it  is  not 
easv  to  discern  when  they  are  sleeping  or  not,  be- 
cause their  eyes  are  always  open.  Nothing  can  be 
more  amusing  than  a  glass  bowl  containing  such 
fishes:  the  double  refractions  of  the  glass  and  water 
represent  them,  when  moving,  in  a  shifting  and 
changeable  variety  of  dimensions,  shades,  and  col- 
ours ;  while  the  two  mediums,  assisted  by  the  con- 
cavo-convex shape  of  the  vessel,  magnify  and  distort 
them  vastly  :  not  to  mention  that  the  introduction 
of  another  element  and  its  inhabitants  into  our  par- 
lours engages  the  fancy  in  a  very  agreeable  manner. 

156 


Gold  and  silver  fishes,  though  originally  natives 
of  China  and  Japan,  yet  are  become  so  well  reconciled 
to  our  climate  as  to  thrive  and  multiply  very  fast  in 
our  ponds  and  stews.  Linnaeus  ranks  this  species  of 
fish  under  the  genus  of  cypriniis,  or  carp,  and  calls  it 
Cypriniis  anrattis. 

Some  people  exhibit  this  sort  of  fish  in  a  very 
fanciful  way ;  for  they  cause  a  glass  bowl  to  be 
blown  with  a  large  hollow  space  within,  that  does  not 
communicate  with  it.  In  this  cavity  they  put  a  bird 
occasionally  ;  so  that  you  may  see  a  goldfinch  or  a 
linnet  hopping  as  it  were  in  the  midst  of  the  water, 
and  the  fishes  swimming  in  a  circle  round  it.  The 
simple  exhibition  of  the  fishes  is  agreeable  and  pleas- 
ant ;  but  in  so  complicated  a  w^ay  they  become 
whimsical  and  unnatural,  and  liable  to  the  objection 
due  to  him  "  who  loves  to  vary  every  single  thing 
prodigiously  " — 

"  Qui  variare  cupit  rem  prodigialiter  unam." 

(HoR.  Ars.  Poet.  29.) 


LETTER    XCIX. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

I  THINK  I  have  observed  before,  that  much  the 
most  considerable  part  of  the  house-martins  with- 
draw from  hence  about  the  first  week  in  October  ;  but 

28  157 


that  some,  the  latter  broods  I  am  now  convinced, 
linofer  on  till  towards  the  middle  of  that  month  :  and 
that  at  times,  once  perhaps  in  two  or  three  years,  a 
flight,  for  one  day  only,  has  shown  itself  in  the  first 
week  in  November. 

Having  taken  notice,  in  October  1780,  that  the 
last  flight  was  numerous,  amounting  perhaps  to  one 
hundred  and  fifty,  and  that  the  season  was  soft  and 
still,  I  was  resolved  to  pay  uncommon  attention  to 
those  late  birds :  to  find,  if  possible,  where  they 
roosted,  and  to  determine  the  precise  time  of  their 
retreat.  The  mode  of  life  of  these  latter  Jiimndines  is 
very  favourable  to  such  a  design  ;  for  they  spend  the 
whole  day  in  the  sheltered  district  between  me  and 
the  Hanger,  sailing  about  in  a  placid,  easy  manner, 
and  feasting  on  those  insects  which  love  to  haunt  a 
spot  so  secure  from  ruffling  winds.  As  my  principal 
object  was  to  discover  the  place  of  their  roosting,  I 
took  care  to  wait  on  them  before  thej^  retired  to  rest, 
and  was  much  pleased  to  find  that,  for  several  even- 
ings together,  just  at  a  quarter-past  five  in  the  after- 
noon, they  all  scudded  away  in  great  haste  towards 
the  south-east,  and  darted  down  among  the  low 
shrubs  above  the  cottages  at  the  end  of  the  hill. 
This  spot  in  many  respects  seems  to  be  well  calcu- 
lated for  their  winter  residence :  for  in  many  parts 
it  is  as  steep  as  the  roof  of  any  house,  and  therefore 
secure  from  the  annoyances  of  water ;  and  it  is  more- 
over   clothed     with    beechen    shrubs,    which,    being 

158 


stunted  and  bitten  by  sheep,  make  the  thickest 
covert  imaginable  ;  they  are  so  entangled  as  to  be 
impervious  to  the  smallest  spaniel:  besides,  it  is  the 
nature  of  underwood  beech  never  to  cast  its  leaf  all 
the  winter;  so  that,  with  the  leaves  on  the  ground 
and  those  on  the  twigs,  no  shelter  can  be  more  com- 
plete. I  w^atched  them  on  to  the  13th  and  14th  of 
October,  and  found  their  evening  retreat  was  exact 
and  uniform  ;  but  after  this  they  made  no  regular 
appearance.  Now  and  then  a  straggler  was  seen ; 
and  on  the  22nd  of  October,  in  the  morning,  I  ob- 
served two  over  the  village,  and  with  them  my 
remarks  for  the  season  ended. 

From  all  these  circumstances  put  together,  it  is 
more  than  probable  that  this  lingering  flight,  at  so 
late  a  season  of  the  year,  never  departed  from  the 
island.  Had  they  indulged  me  that  autumn  with  a 
November  visit,  as  I  much  desired,  I  presume  that, 
with  proper  assistants,  I  should  have  settled  the 
matter  past  all  doubt ;  but  though  the  3rd  of  No- 
vember was  a  sweet  day,  and  in  appearance  exactly 
suited  to  my  wishes,  yet  not  a  martin  was  to  be 
seen  ;  and  so  I  was  forced  reluctantly  to  give  up  the 
pursuit. 

I  have  only  to  add,  that,  were  the  bushes,  which 
cover  some  acres,  and  are  not  my  own  property,  to 
be  grubbed  and  carefully  examined,  probably  those 
late  broods,  and  perhaps  the  whole  aggregate  body 
of  the  house-martins  of  this  district,  might  be  found 

159 


there,  in  different  secret  dormitories  ;  and  that,  so  far 
from  'withdrawing  into  warmer  climes,  it  would  ap- 
pear that    they  never   depart    three    hundred    yards 


from  the  village. 


October  lo,  1781. 


LETTER    C. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

They  who  write  on  natural  history  cannot  too 
frequently  advert  to  instinct,  that  wonderful,  but 
limited  faculty,  which,  in  some  instances,  raises  the 
brute  creation  as  it  were  above  reason,  and  in  others 
leaves  them  so  far  below  it.  Philosophers  have  de- 
fined instinct  to  be  that  secret  influence  by  which 
everv  species  is  impelled  naturally  to  pursue,  at  all 
times,  the  same  way  or  track,  without  any  teaching 
or  example  ;  whereas  reason,  without  instruction, 
would  lead  them  to  do  that  by  many  methods  which 
instinct  effects  by  one  alone.  Now  this  maxim  must 
be  taken  in  a  qualified  sense  ;  for  there  are  instances 
in  which  instinct  does  vary  and  conform  to  the  cir- 
cumstances of  place  and  convenience. 

It  has  been  remarked  that  every  species  of  bird 
has  a  mode  of  nidification  peculiar  to  itself;  so  that  a 
schoolboy  would  at  once  pronounce  on  the  sort  of 
nest  before  him.  This  is  the  case  among  fields  and 
woods,  and  wilds  ;  but  in  the  villages  round  London, 

160 


where  mosses  and  gossamer,  and  cotton  from  vege- 
tables, are  hardly  to  be  found,  the  nest  of  the  chaf- 
finch has  not  that  elegant  finished  appearance,  nor  is 
it  so  beautifully  studded  with  lichens,  as  in  a  more 
rural  district :  and  the  wren  is  obliged  to  construct 
its  house  with  straws  and  dry  grasses,  which  do  not 
give  it  that  rotundity  and  compactness  so  remark- 
able in  the  edifices  of  that  little  architect.  Again, 
the  regular  nest  of  the  house-martin  is  hemispheric ; 
but  where  a  rafter,  or  a  joist,  or  a  cornice,  may  hap- 
pen to  stand  in  the  way,  the  nest  is  so  contrived  as 
to  conform  to  the  obstruction,  and  becomes  fiat  or 
oval,  or  compressed. 

In  the  following  instances  instinct  is  perfectly 
uniform  and  consistent.  There  are  three  creatures, 
the  squirrel,  the  field-mouse,  and  the  bird  called  the 
nut-hatch  {Sitta  Europced),  which  live  much  on  hazel- 
nuts ;  and  yet  they  open  them  each  in  a  different 
way.  The  first,  after  rasping  off  the  small  end,  splits 
the  shell  in  two  with  his  long  fore-teeth,  as  a  man 
does  with  his  knife  ;  the  second  nibbles  a  hole  with 
his  teeth,  as  regular  as  if  drilled  with  a  wimble,  and 
yet  so  small  that  one  would  wonder  how  the  kernel 
can  be  extracted  through  it  ;  while  the  last  picks  an 
irregular  ragged  hole  with  its  bill :  but  as  this  artist 
has  no  paws  to  hold  the  nut  firm  while  he  pierces  it, 
like  an  adroit  workman,  he  fixes  it,  as  it  were  in  a 
vice,  in  some  cleft  of  a  tree,  or  in  some  crevice  : 
when,  standing  over  it,  he  perforates  the  stubborn 

i6i 


shell.  We  have  often  placed  nuts  in  the  chink  of  a 
gate-post  where  nut-hatches  have  been  known  to 
haunt,  and  have  always  found  that  those  birds  have 
readily  penetrated  them.  While  at  work  they  make 
a  rapping  noise,  that  may  be  heard  at  a  considerable 
distance. 

You  that  understand  both  the  theory  and  prac- 
tical part  of  music  may  best  inform  us  why  harmony 
or  melody  should  so  strangely  affect  some  men,  as  it 
were  by  recollection,  for  days  after  a  concert  is  over. 
What  I  mean  the  following  passage  will  explain : — 

"  Prsehabebat  porro  vocibus  humanis,  instrumen- 
tisque  harmonicis  musicam  illam  avium  :  non  quod 
alia  quoque  non  delectaretur  ;  sed  quod  ex  musica 
humana  relinqueretur  in  animo  continens  qucedam, 
attentionemque  et  somnum  conturbans  agitatio ;  dum 
ascensus,  exscensus,  tenores,  ac  mutationes  illse  sono- 
rum,  et  consonantiarum  euntque,  redeuntque  per 
phantasiam  : — cum  nihil  tale  relinqui  possit  ex  modu- 
lationibus  avium,  quae,  quod  non  sunt  perinde  a  nobis 
imitabiles,  non  possunt  perinde  internam  facultatem 
commovere." — Gassendns."^ 


*  "  He  preferred  the  music  of  birds  to  vocal  and  instrumental  har- 
mony, not  that  he  did  not  take  pleasure  in  any  other,  but  because  the 
latter  left  in  the  mind  some  constant  agitation,  disturbing  the  sleep  and 
the  attention  ;  whilst  the  several  variations  of  sound  and  concord  go  and 
return  through  the  imagination  ;  whereas  no  such  effect  can  be  produced 
by  the  modulation  of  birds,  because,  as  they  are  not  equally  imitable  by 
us,  they  cannot  equally  excite  the  internal  faculty." — Gassendus  in  the 
Life  of  Peiresc, 

162 


This  curious  quotation  strikes  me  much  by  so 
well  representing  my  own  case,  and  by  describing 
what  I  have  so  often  felt,  but  never  could  so  well 
express.  When  1  hear  fine  music  1  am  haunted  with 
passages  therefrom  night  and  day  ;  and  especially  at 
first  waking,  which,  by  their  importunity,  give  me 
more  uneasiness  than  pleasure :  elegant  lessons  still 
tease  my  imagination,  and  recur  irresistibly  to  my 
recollection  at  seasons,  and  even  when  I  am  desirous 
of  thinking  of  more  serious  matters. 


LETTER  CI. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

A  RARE,  and  I  think  a  new,  little  bird  frequents 
my  garden,  which  1  have  great  reason  to  think  is  the 
pettichaps:^  it  is  common  in  some  parts  of  the  king- 
dom ;  and  I  have  received  formerly  several  dead 
specimens  from  Gibraltar.  This  bird  much  resem- 
bles the  white-throat,  but  has  a  more  white  or  silvery 
breast  and  belly  ;  is  restless  and  active^iike  the  willow- 
wrens,  and  hops  from  bough  to  bough,  examining 
every  part  for  food  ;  it  also  runs  up  the  stems  of  the 

*  Lesser  white-throat  {Sylvia  ctirrtua,  Temm.),  and  not  the  petti- 
chaps  ;  the  song  is  very  sweet,  and  more  perfect  in  its  notes  than  that  of 
the  white-throat :  it  is  shy,  wary,  and  even  petulant  in  avoiding  intruders. 

163 


crown-imperials,  and  putting  its  head  into  the  bells 
of  those  flowers,  sips  the  liquor  which  stands  in  the 
iiectariiiin  of  each  petal.  Sometimes  it  feeds  on  the 
ground,  like  the  hedge-sparrow,  hopping  about  on 
the  grass-plots  and  mown  walks. 

One  of  my  neighbours,  an  intelligent  and  observ- 
ing man,  informs  me,  that,  in  the  beginning  of  May, 
and  about  ten  minutes  before  eight  o'clock  in  the 
evening,  he  discovered  a  great  cluster  of  house- 
swallows,  thirtv  at  least,  he  supposes,  perching  on  a 
willow  that  hung  over  James  Knight's  upper-pond. 
His  attention  was  first  drawn  by  the  twittering  of 
these  birds,  which  sat  motionless  in  a  row  on  the 
bough,  with  their  heads  all  one  wav,  and,  by  their 
weight,  pressing  down  the  twig  so  that  it  nearlv 
touched  the  water.  In  this  situation  he  watched 
them  till  he  could  see  no  longer.  Repeated  accounts 
of  this  sort,  in  spring  and  fall,  induce  me  greatlv  to 
suspect  that  house-swallows  have  some  strong  attach- 
ment to  water,  independent  of  the  matter  of  food  ; 
and,  though  thev  mav  not  retire  into  that  element, 
yet  they  mav  conceal  themselves  in  the  banks  of 
pools  and  rivers  during  the  uncomfortable  months  of 
winter. 

One  of  the  keepers  of  Wolmer  Forest  sent  me  a 
peregrine-falcon,  which  he  shot  on  the  verge  of  that 
district,  as  it  was  devouring  a  wood-pigeon.  The 
Falco  pcrcgrinus.  or  haggard  falcon,  is  a  noble  species 

of  hawk  seldom  seen  in  the  southern  counties.      In 

164 


the  winter  of  1767  one  was  killed  in  the  neighbouring 
parish  of  Farringdon,  and  sent  by  me  to  Mr.  Pennant 


A  peregrine- falcon. 

into  North  Wales.*  Since  that  time  I  have  met  with 
none  till  now.  The  specimen  mentioned  above  was 
in  fine  preservation,  and  not  injured  by  the  shot :  it 
measured  forty-two  inches  from  wing  to  wing,  and 
twenty-one  from  beak  to  tail,  and  weighed  two 
pounds  and  a  half  standard  weight.  This  species  is 
very  robust,  and  wonderfully  formed  for  rapine  :  its 
breast  was  plump  and  muscular ;  its  thighs  long, 
thick,  and  brawny  ;    and  its   legs  remarkably   short 


See  my  Tenth  and  Eleventh  Letters,  vol.  i.,  pages  40  and  4:: 
165 


and  well  set :  the  feet  were  armed  with  most  for- 
midable sharp,  long  talons :  the  eyelids  and  cere  of 
the  bill  were  yellow ;  but  the  irides  of  the  eyes 
dusky  ;  the  beak  was  thick  and  hooked,  and  of  a 
dark  colour,  and  had  a  jagged  process  near  the  end 
of  the  upper  mandible  on  each  side  :  its  tail,  or  train, 
was  short  in  proportion  to  the  bulk  of  its  body  :  yet 
the  wings,  when  closed,  did  not  extend  to  the  end  ol 
the  train.  From  its  large  and  fair  proportions  it 
might  be  supposed  to  have  been  a  female  ;  but  I  was 
not  permitted  to  cut  open  the  specimen.  For  one  of 
the  birds  of  prey,  which  are  usually  lean,  this  was 
in  high  case :  in  its  craw  were  many  barley-corns, 
which  probably  came  from  the  crop  of  the  wood- 
pigeon,  on  which  it  was  feeding  when  shot  :  for 
voracious  birds  do  not  eat  grain  ;  but,  when  devour- 
ing their  quarry,  with  undistinguishing  vehemence 
they  swallow  bones  and  feathers,  and  all  matters, 
indiscriminately.  This  falcon  was  probably  driven 
from  the  mountains  of  North  Wales  or  Scotland, 
where  they  are  known  to  breed,  by  rigorous  weather 
and  the  deep  snows  that  had  lately  fallen. 


I66 


LETTER  CII. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

My  near  neighbour,  a  young  gentleman  in  the 
service  of  the  East  India  Company,  has  brought 
home  a  dog  and  a  bitch  of  the  Chinese  breed  from 
Canton  ;  such  as  are  fattened  in  that  country  for  the 
purpose  of  being  eaten:  they  are  about  the  size  of 
a  moderate  spaniel ;  of  a  pale  yellow  colour,  with 
coarse  bristling  hairs  on  their  backs ;  sharp  upright 
ears,  and  peaked  heads,  which  give  them  a  very 
fox-like  appearance.  Their  hind  legs  are  unusually 
straight,  without  any  bend  at  the  hock  or  ham,  to 
such  a  degree  as  to  give  them  an  awkward  gait 
when  they  trot.  When  they  are  in  motion,  their 
tails  are  curved  high  over  their  backs  like  those  of 
some  hounds ;  they  have  a  bare  place  each  on  the 
outside  from  the  tip  midway,  that  does  not  seem  to 
be  matter  of  accident,  but  is  somewhat  singular. 
Their  eyes  are  jet  black,  small,  and  piercing;  the 
insides  of  their  lips  and  mouths  of  the  same  colour, 
and  their  tongues  blue.  The  bitch  has  a  dew-claw 
on  each  hind  leg;  the  dog  has  none.  When  taken 
out  into  the  field,  the  bitch  showed  some  disposition 
for  hunting,  and  dwelt  on  the  scent  of  a  covey  of 
partridges,  till  she  sprung  them,  giving  tongue  all 
the  time.  The  dogs  in  South  America  are  dumb; 
but  these  bark  much  in  a  short  thick  manner,  Hke 

167 


foxes ;  and  have  a  surly,  savage  demeanour  like 
their  ancestors,  which  are  not  domesticated,  but 
bred  up  in  sties,  where  they  are  fed  for  the  table, 
with  rice-meal,  and  other  farinaceous  food.  These 
dogs  having  been  taken  on  board  as  soon  as  weaned, 
could  not  learn  much  from  their  dam  ;  yet  they  did 
not  relish  flesh  when  they  came  to  England.  In  the 
islands  of  the  Pacific  Ocean  the  dogs  are  bred  up  on 
vegetables,  and  would  not  eat  flesh  when  offered 
them  by  our  circumnavigators. 

We  believe  that  all  dogs,  in  a  state  of  nature, 
have  sharp,  upright,  fox-like  ears  ;  and  that  hanging 
ears,  which  are  esteemed  so  graceful,  are  the  effect 
of  choice  breeding  and  cultivation.  Thus,  in  the 
travels  of  Ysbrandt  Ides  from  Muscovy  to  China, 
the  dogs  which  draw  the  Tartars  on  snow-sledges 
near  the  river  Obey  are  engraved  with  prick-ears, 
like  those  from  Canton.  The  Kamschatdales  also 
train  the  same  sort  of  sharp-eared  peak-nosed  dogs 
to  draw  their  sledges ;  as  may  be  seen  in  an  elegant 
print  engraved  for  Captain  Cook's  last  voyage  round 
the  world. 

Now  we  are  upon  the  subject  of  dogs,  it  may  not 
be  impertinent  to  add,  that  spaniels,  as  all  sportsmen 
know,  though  they  hunt  partridges  and  pheasants 
as  it  were  by  instinct,  and  with  much  delight  and 
alacrity,  yet  will  hardly  touch  their  bones  when 
offered  as  food  ;  nor  will  a  mongrel  dog  of  my  own, 
though    he   is    remarkable    for   finding   that  sort  of 

i68 


game.  But,  when  we  came  to  offer  the  bones  of 
partridges  to  the  two  Chinese  dogs,  they  devoured 
them  with  much  greediness,  and  licked  the  platter 
clean. 

No  sporting  dog  will  flush  woodcocks  till  inured 
to  the  scent  and  trained  to  the  sport,  which  they 
then  pursue  with  vehemence  and  transport ;  but 
then  they  will  not  touch  their  bones,  but  turn  from 
them  with  abhorrence,  even  when  they  are  hungry. 

Now,  that  dogs  should  not  be  fond  of  the  bones 
of  such  birds  as  they  are  not  disposed  to  hunt  is  no 
wonder ;  but  why  they  reject,  and  do  not  care  to 
eat  their  natural  game,  is  not  so  easily  accounted 
for,  since  the  end  of  hunting  seems  to  be,  that  the 
chase  pursued  should  be  eaten.  Dogs  again  will 
not  devour  the  more  rancid  water-fowls,  nor  indeed 
the  bones  of  any  wild  fowl ;  nor  will  they  touch  the 
foetid  bodies  of  birds  that  feed  on  offal  and  garbage : 
and  indeed  there  may  be  somewhat  of  providential 
instinct  in  this  circumstance  of  dislike ;  for  vultures,* 
and  kites,  and  ravens,  and  crows,  &c.  were  intended 
to  be  messmates  with  dogs  over  their  carrion  ;  and 
seem  to  be  appointed  by  Nature  as  fellow-scaven- 
gers to  remove  all  cadaverous  nuisances  from  the 
face  of  the  earth. 
Selborne. 

*  Hasselquist,  in  his  "  Travels  to  the  Levant,"  observes  that  the  dogs 
and  vultures  at  Grand  Cairo  maintain  such  a  friendly  intercourse  as  to 
bring  up  their  young  together  in  the  same  place. 

169 


LETTER    cm. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

The  fossil  wood  buried  in  the  bogs  of  Wolmer 
Forest  is  not  yet  all  exhausted,  for  the  peat-cutters 
now  and  then  stumble  upon  a  log.  I  have  just  seen 
a  piece  which  was  sent  by  a  labourer  of  Oakhanger 
to  a  carpenter  of  this  village ;  this  was  the  butt-end 
of  a  small  oak,  about  five  feet  long,  and  about  five 
inches  in  diameter.  It  had  apparently  been  severed 
from  the  ground  by  an  axe,  was  very  ponderous,  and 
as  black  as  ebony.  Upon  asking  the  carpenter  for 
what  purpose  he  had  procured  it,  he  told  me  that  it 
was  to  be  sent  to  his  brother,  a  joiner,  at  Farnham, 
who  was  to  make  use  of  it  in  cabinet-work,  by  inlay- 
ing it  along  with  whiter  woods. 

Those  that  are  much  abroad  on  evenings  after  it 
is  dark,  in  spring  and  summer,  frequently  hear  a 
nocturnal  bird  passing  by  on  the  wing,  and  repeating 
often  a  short  quick  note.  This  bird  I  have  remarked 
myself,  but  never  could  make  out  till  lately.  I  am 
assured  now  that  it  is  the  stone-curlew  {Charadrius 
cedicnentus).  Some  of  them  pass  over  or  near  my 
house  almost  every  evening  after  it  is  dark:  from 
the  uplands  of  the  hill  and  North  field,  away  down 
towards  Dorton,  where,  among  the  streams  and 
meadows,  they  find  a  greater  plenty  of  food.     Birds 

that  fly  by  night  are  obliged  to  be  noisy  ;  their  notes 

170 


often  repeated  become  signals  or  watch-words  to 
keep  them  together,  that  they  may  not  stray  or  lose 
each  other  in  the  dark. 

The  evening  proceedings  and  manoeuvres  of  rooks 
are  curious  and  amusing  in  the  autumn.  Just  before 
dusk  they  return  in  long  strings  from  the  foraging 
of  the  day,  and  rendezvous  by  thousands  over  Sel- 
borne-down,  where  they  wheel  round  in  the  air,  and 
sport,  and  dive,  in  a  playful  manner,  all  the  while 
exerting  their  voices,  and  making  a  loud  cawing, 
which,  being  blended  and  softened  by  the  distance 
that  we  at  the  village  are  below  them,  becomes  a 
confused  noise  or  chiding;  or  rather  a  pleasing  mur- 
mur, very  engaging  to  the  imagination,  and  not  un- 
like the  cry  of  a  pack  of  hounds  in  hollow,  echoing 
woods ;  or  the  rushing  of  the  wind  in  tall  trees,  or 
the  tumbling  of  the  tide  upon  a  pebbly  shore.  When 
this  ceremony  is  over,  with  the  last  gleam  of  day, 
they  retire  for  the  night  to  the  deep  beechen  woods 
of  Tisted  and  Ropley.  We  remember  a  little  girl 
who,  as  she  was  going  to  bed,  used  to  remark  on 
such  an  occurrence,  in  the  true  spirit  of  physico- 
theology,  that  the  rooks  were  saying  their  prayers ; 
and  yet  this  child  was  much  too  young  to  be  aware 
that  the  Scriptures  have  said  of  the  Deity — that  ''  He 
feedeth  the  ravens  who  call  upon  Him." 


29  171 


LETTER   CIV. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

In  reading   Dr.  Huxham's   Observationes  de  Aere, 
&c.,   written  at   Plymouth,   I  find   by   those  curious 
and  accurate  remarks  which  contain  an  account  of 
the  weather  from  the  year  1727  to  the  year   1748,  in- 
clusive, that  though  there  is  frequent  rain  in  that  dis- 
trict of  Devonshire,  yet  the  quantity  falling  is  not 
great ;  and  that  some  years  it  has  been  very  small : 
for  in    1 73 1    the  rain   measured   only    I7^"<^h. — 266thou 
and  in  1741,  20—354;  and  again  in  1743  only  20 — 908. 
Places  near  the  sea  have  frequent  scuds  that  keep 
the  atmosphere  moist,  yet  do  not  reach  far  up  into 
the  country ;    making  thus  the   maritime   situations 
appear  wet,  when  the  rain  is  not  considerable.     In 
the  wettest  years  at  Plymouth,  the  Doctor  measured 
only  once  36;  and  again  once,  viz.  1734,  37 — 114:  a 
quantity   of  rain   that  has  twice   been    exceeded    at 
Selborne   in   the    short   period   of  my  observations. 
Dr.  Huxham  remarks,  that  frequent  small  rains  keep 
the  air  moist ;  while  heavy  ones  render  it  more  dry, 
by  beating  down  the  vapours.     He  is  also  of  opin- 
ion that  the  dingy,  smoky  appearance  in  the  sky,  in 
very  dry  seasons,  arises   from   the  want  of  moisture 
sufficient  to  let  the  light  through,  and  render  the 
atmosphere  transparent ;    because   he   had   observed 

several  bodies  more  diaphanous  when  wet  than  dry  ; 

172 


and  never  recollected  that  the  air  had  that  look  in 
rainy  seasons. 

My  friend,  who  lives  just  beyond  the  top  of  the 
town,  brought  his  three  swivel  guns  to  try  them  in 
my  outlet,  with  their  muzzles  towards  the  Hanger, 
supposing  that  the  report  would  have  had  a  great 
effect;  but  the  experiment  did  not  answer  his  expec- 
tation. He  then  removed  them  to  the  Alcove  on  the 
Hanger ;  when  the  sound,  rushing  along  the  Lythe 
and  Combwood,  was  very  grand  :  but  it  was  at  the 
Hermitage  that  the  echoes  and  the  repercussions 
most  delighted  the  hearers ;  not  only  filling  the 
Lythe  with  the  roar,  as  if  all  the  beeches  were 
tearing  up  by  the  roots ;  but,  turning  to  the  left, 
they  pervaded  the  vale  above  Combwood-ponds ; 
and  after  a  pause  seemed  to  take  up  the  crash  again, 
and  to  extend  round  Harteley-hangers,  dying  away 
at  last  among  the  coppices  and  coverts  of  Wardle- 
ham.  It  has  been  remarked  before  that  this  district 
is  an  anathoth,  a  place  of  responses  or  echoes,  and 
therefore  proper  for  such  experiments :  we  may  far- 
ther add  that  the  pauses  in  echoes,  when  they  cease 
and  yet  are  taken  up  again,  like  the  pauses  in  music, 
surprise  the  hearers,  and  have  a  fine  effect  on  the 
imagination. 

The  gentleman  above  mentioned  has  just  fixed  a 
barometer  in  his  parlour  at  Newton  Valence.  The 
tube  was  first  filled  here  (at  Selborne)  twice  with 
care,   when  the   mercury  agreed   and  stood   exactly 

173 


with  my  own  ;  but,  being  filled  again  twice  at  New- 
ton, the  mercury  stood,  on  account  of  the  great  ele- 
vation of  that  house,  three-tenths  of  an  inch  lower 
than  the  barometers  at  this  village,  and  so  it  con- 
tinues to  do,  be  the  weight  of  the  atmosphere  what 
it  may.  The  plate  of  the  barometer  at  Newton  is 
figured  as  low  as  27  ;  because  in  stormy  weather  the 

mercury    there    will 
,     sometimes     descend 
;  below  28.     We  have 

;  supposed      Newton- 

house  to  stand  two 
hundred  feet  higher 
than  this  house  :  but 
if  the  rule  holds 
good,  which  says 
that  mercury  in  a 
barometer  sinks  one- 
tenth  of  an  inch  for 
every  hundred  feet 
elevation,  then  the 
Newton  barometer, 
by  standing  three- 
tenths  lower  than 
that  of  Selborne, 
proves  that  Newton- 
house  must  be  three 
hundred  feet  higher  than  that  in  which  I  am  writ- 
ing, instead  of  two  hundred. 

174 


The  tower  of  Selborne  church. 


It  may  not  be  impertinent  to  add,  that  the  ba- 
rometers at  Selborne  stand  three-tenths  of  an  inch 
below  the  barometers  at  South  Lambeth  ;  whence 
we  may  conclude  that  the  former  place  is  about 
three  hundred  feet  higher  than  the  latter ;  and  with 
good  reason,  because  the  streams  that  rise  with  us 
run  into  the  Thames  at  Weybridge,  and  so  to  Lon- 
don. Of  course  therefore  there  must  be  lower 
ground  all  the  way  from  Selborne  to  South  Lam- 
beth ;  the  distance  between  which,  all  the  windings 
and  indentings  of  the  streams  considered,  cannot  be 
less  than  a  hundred  miles. 


LETTER   CV. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

Since  the  weather  of  a  district  is  undoubtedly 
part  of  its  natural  history,  I  shall  make  no  further 
apology  for  the  four  following  letters,  Avhich  will 
contain  many  particulars  concerning  some  of  the 
great  frosts,  and  a  few  respecting  some  very  hot 
summers,  that  have  distinguished  themselves  from 
the  rest  during  the  course  of  my  observations. 

As  the  frost  in  January  1768  was,  for  the  small 
time  it  lasted,  the  most  severe  that  we  had  then 
known  for  many  years,  and  was  remarkably  injurious 
to  evergreens,  some  account  of  its  rigour,  and  reason 

175 


of  its  ravages,  may  be  useful,  and  not  unacceptable 
to  persons  that  delight  in  planting  and  ornamenting  ; 
and  may  particularly  become  a  work  that  professes 
never  to  lose  sight  of  utility. 

For  the  last  two  or  three  days  of  the  former  year 
there  were  considerable  falls  of  snow,  which  lay  deep 
and  uniform  on  the  ground,  without  any  drifting; 
wrapping  up  the  more  humble  vegetation  in  perfect 
security.  From  the  first  day  to  the  fifth  of  the  new 
year,  more  snow  succeeded  ;  but  from  that  day  the 
air  became  entirely  clear;  and  the  heat  of  the  sun 
about  noon  had  considerable  influence  in  sheltered 
situations. 

It  was  in  such  an  aspect  that  the  snow  on  the 
author's  evergreens  was  melted  every  day,  and 
frozen  intensely  every  night ;  so  that  the  laurus- 
tines,  bays,  laurels,  and  arbutuses  looked,  in  three  or 
four  days,  as  if  they  had  been  burnt  in  the  fire; 
while  a  neigbour's  plantation  of  the  same  kind,  in  a 
high  cold  situation,  where  the  snow  never  melted 
at  all,  remained  uninjured. 

From  hence  I  would  infer  that  it  is  the  repeated 
melting  and  freezing  of  the  snow  that  is  so  fatal  to 
vegetation,  rather  than  the  severity  of  the  cold. 
Therefore  it  highly  behoves  every  planter  who 
wishes  to  escape  the  cruel  mortification  of  losing 
in  a  few  days  the  labour  and  hopes  of  years,  to 
bestir  himself  on  such  emergencies ;  and,  if  his  plan- 
tations are   small,   to  avail    himself  of  mats,   cloths, 

176 


peasehaum,  straw,  reeds,  or  any  such  covering-,  for  a 
short  time ;  or,  if  his  shrubberies  are  extensive,  to 
see  that  his  people  go  about  with  prongs  and  forks, 
and  carefully  dislodge  the  snow  from  the  boughs: 
since  the  naked  foliage  will  shift  much  better  for 
itself  than  when  the  snow  is  partly  melted  and  frozen 
again. 

It  may  perhaps  appear  at  first  like  a  paradox ; 
but  doubtless  the  more  tender  trees  and  shrubs 
should  never  be  planted  in  hot  aspects ;  not  only  for 
the  reason  assigned  above,  but  also  because,  thus 
circumstanced,  they  are  disposed  to  shoot  earlier  in 
the  spring,  and  to  grow  on  later  in  the  autumn,  than 
they  would  otherwise  do,  and  so  are  sufferers  by 
lagging  or  early  frosts.  For  this  reason  also,  plants 
from  Siberia  will  hardly  endure  our  climate :  be- 
cause, on  the  very  first  advances  of  spring,  they 
shoot  away,  and  so  are  cut  off  by  the  severe  nights 
of  March  or  April. 

Dr.  Fothergill  and  others  have  experienced  the 
same  inconvenience  with  respect  to  the  more  tender 
shrubs  from  North  America ;  which  they  therefore 
plant  under  north  walls.  There  should  also,  per- 
haps, be  a  wall  to  the  east,  to  defend  them  from  the 
piercing  blasts  from  that  quarter. 

This  observation  might  without  any  impropriety 
be  carried  into  animal  life  ;  for  discernins:  bee-mas- 
ters  now  find  that  their  hives  should  not  in  the  win- 
ter be  exposed  to  the  hot  sun,  because  such   unsea- 

177 


sonable  warmth  awakens  the  inhabitants  too  early 
from  their  slumbers ;  and,  by  putting  their  juices 
into  motion  too  soon,  subjects  them  afterwards  to 
inconveniences  when  rigorous  weather  returns. 

The  coincidents  attending  this  short  but  intense 
frost,  were,  that  the  horses  fell  sick  with  an  epidemic 
distemper,  which  injured  the  wind  of  many,  and 
killed  some ;  that  colds  and  coughs  were  general 
among  the  human  species ;  that  it  froze  under  peo- 
ple's beds  for  several  nights ;  that  meat  was  frozen 
so  hard  that  it  could  not  be  spitted,  and  could  not 
be  secured  but  in  cellars  ;  that  several  redwings  and 
thrushes  were  killed  by  the  frost;  and  that  the 
large  titmouse  continued  to  pull  straws  lengthwise 
from  the  eaves  of  thatched  houses  and  barns  in  a 
most  adroit  manner,  for  a  purpose  that  has  been  ex- 
plained already.^ 

On  the  3rd  of  January,  Benjamin  Martin's  ther- 
mometer within  doors,  in  a  close  parlour  where  there 
was  no  fire,  fell  in  the  night  to  20,  and  on  the  4th  to 
18,  and  on  the  7th  to  ly^,  a  degree  of  cold  which 
the  owner  never  observed  in  the  same  situation ; 
and  he  regrets  much  that  he  was  not  able  at  that 
juncture  to  attend  his  instrument  abroad.  All  this 
time  the  wind  continued  north  and  north-east ;  and 
yet  on  the  8th  roost-cocks,  which  had  been  silent, 
began  to  sound  their  clarions,  and  crow  with  clam- 

*  See  Letter  LXI.  to  Mr.  Pennant,  vol.  ii.,  p.  30. 

178 


our,  as  prognostic  of  milder  weather ;  moles  also 
began  to  heave  and  work,  and  a  manifest  thaw  took 
place.  From  the  latter  circumstance  we  may  con- 
clude that  thaws  often  originate  under  ground  from 
warm  vapours  which  arise  ;  else  how  should  subter- 
raneous animals  receive  such  early  intimations  of 
their  approach  ?  Moreover,  we  have  often  observed 
that  cold  seems  to  descend  from  above ;  for,  when 
a  thermometer  hangs  abroad  in  a  frosty  night,  the 
intervention  of  a  cloud  ^  shall  immediately  raise  the 
mercury  ten  degrees :  and  a  clear  sky  shall  again 
compel  it  to  descend  to  its  former  gage. 

And  here  it  may  be  proper  to  observe,  on  what 
has  been  said  above,  that  though  frosts  advance  to 
their  utmost  severity  by  somewhat  of  a  regular  gra- 


*  The  cloud  of  vapour  indicates  increased  radiation  of  heat  and  con- 
sequent evaporation  where  it  occurs  ;  as  the  clear  sky  is  indicative  of 
their  absence.  The  following  figures  represent  the  temperature  in  the 
open  air,  at  one  foot  and  at  two  feet  under  ground,  the  top  figures  repre- 
senting the  months,  those  below,  the  mean  average  of  each  during  the 
ten  years. 


I 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

57-54 
57-89 
56.14 

10 

II 

12 

I  ft. 

2  ft. 

Air. 

40.07 
41.03 
38.2 

39-4 
40.1 
38.1 

40.90 

41.59 
40.49 

46.47 
46.25 
46.57 

53-11 
52.01 
53-34 

60.02 

58.47 
60.45 

62.85 
61.71 
63.40 

61.80 
61.26 
61.28 

51-13 
52-79 
49-35 

46.05 
47.28 
42.89 

41-13 
42-83 
38.14 

It  thus  appears  that  the  temperature  at  two  feet  below  the  surface 
is  2°  33'  higher  than  in  the  air  in  January  ;  1°  7'  in  February  ;  0°  77'  in 
March;  0°  25'  in  August;  1°  57'  in  September;  2°  80'  in  October;  3° 
75' in  November;  and  3°  84'  in  December.  On  the  other  bond,  the 
temperature  is  higher  by  0°  21'  in  the  open  air  in  April  ;  0°  98'  in 
May  ;   1°  21'  in  June  ;  and  1°  12'  in  July. 

179 


dation,  yet  thaws  do  not  usually  come  on  by  so 
regular  a  declension  of  cold  ;  but  often  take  place 
immediately  after  intense  freezing;  as  men  in  sick- 
ness often  mend  at  once  from  a  paroxysm. 

To  the  great  credit  of  Portugal  laurels  and  Amer- 
ican junipers,  be  it  remembered  that  they  remained 
untouched  amidst  the  general  havoc :  hence  men 
should  learn  to  ornament  chiefly  with  such  trees  as 
are  able  to  withstand  accidental  severities,  and  not 
subject  themselves  to  the  vexation  of  a  loss  which 
may  befall  them,  once,  perhaps,  in  ten  years,  yet  may 
hardly  be  recovered  through  the  whole  course  of 
their  lives. 

As  it  afterwards  appeared,  the  ilexes  were  much 
injured,  the  cypresses  were  half  destroyed,  the  ar- 
butuses lingered  on,  but  never  recovered  ;  and  the 
bays,  laurustines,  and  laurels  were  killed  to  the 
ground,  and  the  very  wild  hollies,  in  hot  aspects, 
were  so  much  affected  that  they  cast  all  their  leaves. 

By  the    14th   of  January  the   snow   was  entirely 

gone ;  the  turnips  emerged  not  damaged  at  all,  save 

in  sunny  places ;  the  wheat  looked  delicate,  and  the 

garden-plants  were  well  preserved  ;  for  snow  is  the 

most   kindly    mantle    that  infant  vegetation  can   be 

wrapped  in  ;  were  it  not  for  that  friendly  meteor,  no 

vegetable  life  could  exist  at  all  in  northerly  regions. 

Yet  in  Sweden,  the  earth  in  April  is  not  divested  of 

snow  for  more  than  a  fortnight  before  the  face  of  the 

country  is  covered  with  flowers. 

180 


LETTER   CVI. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

There  were  some  circumstances  attending  the 
remarkable  frost  in  January  1776,  so  singular  and 
striking,  that  a  short  detail  of  them  may  not  be  un- 
acceptable. 

The  most  certain  way  to  be  exact  will  be  to  copy 
the  passages  from  my  journal,  which  were  taken  from 
time  to  time,  as  things  occurred.  But  it  may  be 
proper  previously  to  remark,  that  the  first  week  in 
January  was  uncommonly  wet,  and  drowned  with 
vast  rains  from  every  quarter :  from  whence  it  may 
be  inferred,  as  there  is  great  reason  to  believe  is  the 
case,  that  intense  frosts  seldom  take  place  till  the 
earth  is  perfectly  glutted  and  chilled  with  water ;  ^ 
and  hence  dry  autumns  are  seldom  followed  by  rig- 
orous winters. 

January  jtJi. — Snow  driving  all  the  day,  which 
was  followed  by  frost,  sleet,  and  some  snow,  till  the 
1 2th,  when  a  prodigious  mass  overwhelmed  all  the 
works  of  men,  drifting  over  the  tops  of  the  gates,  and 
filling  the  hollow  lanes. 


*  The  autumn  preceding  January  1768  was  very  wet,  and  particularly 
the  month  of  September,  during  which  there  fell  at  Lyndon,  in  the 
county  of  Rutland,  six  inches  and  a  half  of  rain.  And  the  terrible  long 
frost  in  1739-40  set  in  after  a  rainy  season,  and  when  the  springs  were 
very  high. 


On  the  14th  the  writer  was  obliged  to  be  much 
abroad  ;  and  thinks  he  never,  before  or  since,  has 
encountered  such  rugg.ed  Siberian  weather.  Many 
of  the  narrow  roads  were  now  filled  above  the  tops 
of  the  hedges ;  through  which  the  snow  was  driven 
into  most  romantic  and  grotesque  shapes,  so  striking 
to  the  imagination  as  not  to  be  seen  without  wonder 
and  pleasure.  The  poultry  dared  not  stir  out  of  their 
roosting-places ;  for  cocks  and  hens  are  so  dazzled 
and  confounded  by  the  glare  of  snow  that  they  would 
soon  perish  without  assistance.  The  hares  also  lay 
sullenly  in  their  seats,  and  would  not  move  till  com- 
pelled by  hunger  ;  being  conscious,  poor  animals,  that 
the  drifts  and  heaps  treacherously  betray  their  foot- 
steps, and  prove  fatal  to  numbers  of  them. 

From  the  14th  the  snow  continued  to  increase,  and 
began  to  stop  the  road-waggons  and  coaches,  which 
could  no  longer  keep  on  their  regular  stages:  more 
especially  on  the  western  roads,  where  the  fall  ap- 
pears to  have  been  deeper  than  in  the  south.  The 
company  at  Bath,  that  wanted  to  attend  the  Queen's 
birthday,  were  strangely  incommoded  :  the  carriages 
of  many  persons,  who  got  on  their  way  to  town  from 
Bath  as  far  as  Marlborough,  after  strange  embarrass- 
ments, here  met  with  a  7ie  plus  ultra.  The  ladies 
fretted,  and  offered  large  rewards  to  labourers  if 
they  would  shovel  them  a  track  to  London  :  but  the 
relentless  heaps  of  snow  were  too  bulky  to  be  re- 
moved ;    and   so  the    i8th   passed   over,  leaving  the 

182 


company  in  very  uncomfortable  circumstances  at  the 
Castle  and  other  inns. 

On  the  20th  the  sun  shone  out  for  the  first  time 
since  the  frost  began  ;  a  circumstance  that  has  been 


The  weather. 

remarked  on  before  as  much  in  favour  of  vegetation. 
All  this  time  the  cold  was  not  very  intense,  for  the 
thermometer  stood  at  29,  28,  25,  and  thereabout:  but 
on  the  2 1st  it  descended  to  20.     The  birds  now  be- 

183 


gan  to  be  in  a  very  pitiable  and  starving-  condition. 
Tamed  by  the  season,  skylarks  settled  in  the  streets 
of  towns,  because  they  saw  the  ground  was  bare ; 
rooks  frequented  dunghills  close  to  houses;  and 
crows  watched  horses  as  they  passed,  and  greedily 
devoured  what  dropped  from  them  ;  hares  now  came 
into  the  gardens,  and,  scraping  away  the  snow,  de- 
voured such  plants  as  they  could  find. 

On  the  22nd  the  author  had  occasion  to  go  to 
London  through  a  sort  of  Laplandian  scene,  very 
wild  and  grotesque  indeed.  But  the  metropolis  itself 
exhibited  a  still  more  singular  appearance  than  the 
country ;  for,  being  bedded  deep  in  snow,  the  pave- 
ment of  the  streets  could  not  be  touched  by  the 
wheels  or  the  horses'  feet,  so  that  the  carriages  ran 
about  without  the  least  noise.  Such  an  exemption 
from  din  and  clatter  was  strange,  but  not  pleasant ; 
it  seemed  to  convey  an  uncomfortable  idea  of  deso- 
lation : 

*' ipsa  silentia  terrent." 

"  By  silence  terrified." 

On  the  27th  much  snow  fell  all  day,  and  in  the 
evening  the  frost  became  very  intense.  At  South 
Lambeth,  for  the  four  following  nights,  the  thermom- 
eter fell  to  II,  7,  6,  6;  and  at  Selborne  to  7,  6,  10; 
and  on  the  31st  of  January,  just  before  sunrise,  with 
rime  on  the  trees  and  on  the  tube  of  the  glass,  the 
quicksilver  sank  exactly   to  zero,  being  32   degrees 

below  the  freezing-point:  but  by  eleven  in  the  morn- 

184 


ing,  though  in  the  shade,  it  sprang  up  to  i6|-^ — a 
most  unusual  degree  of  cold  this  for  the  south  of 
England  !  During  these  four  nights  the  cold  was  so 
penetrating,  that  it  occasioned  ice  in  warm  cham- 
bers, and  under  beds ;  and  in  the  day,  the  wind  was 
so  keen,  that  persons  of  robust  constitutions  could 
scarcely  endure  to  face  it.  The  Thames  was  at  once 
frozen  over  both  above  and  below  bridge,  so  that 
crowds  ran  about  on  the  ice.  The  streets  were  now 
strangely  incumbered  with  snow,  which  crumbled 
and  trod  dusty;  and  soon  turning  grey,  resembled 
bay-salt :  what  had  fallen  on  the  roofs  was  perfectly 
dry,  that,  from  first  to  last,  it  lay  twenty-six  days  on 
the  houses  in  the  city ;  a  longer  time  than  had  been 
remembered  by  the  oldest  housekeepers  living.  Ac- 
cording to  all  appearances,  we  might  now  have  ex- 
pected the  continuance  of  this  rigorous  weather  for 
weeks  to  come,  since  every  night  increased  in  sever- 
ity ;  but  behold,  without  any  apparent  cause,  on  the 
1st  of  February,  a  thaw  took  place,  and  some  rain 
followed  before  night,  making  good  the  observation 
above,  that  frosts  often  go  off  as  it  were  at  once,  with- 
out any  gradual  declension  of  cold.  On  the  2d  of 
February  the  thaw  persisted  ;  and  on  the  3d  swarms 

*  At  Selborne  the  cold  was  greater  than  at  any  other  place  that  the 
author  could  hear  of  with  certainty :  though  it  was  reported  at  the  time, 
that  at  a  village  in  Kent,  the  thermometer  fell  two  degrees  below  zero, 
viz.  34  degrees  below  the  freezing-point. 

The  thermometer  used  at  Selborne  was  graduated  by  Benjamin 
Martin. 

185 


of  little  insects  were  frisking-  and  sporting  in  a  court- 
yard at  South  Lambeth,  as  if  they  had  felt  no  frost. 
Why  the  juices  in  the  small  bodies,  and  smaller  limbs, 
of  such  minute  beings  are  not  frozen,  is  a  matter  of 
curious  inquiry. 

Severe  frosts  seem  to  be  partial,  or  to  run  in  cur- 
rents ;  for,  at  the  same  juncture,  as  the  author  was 
informed  by  accurate  correspondents,  at  Lyndon,  in 
the  county  of  Rutland,  the  thermometer  stood  at  19  ; 
at  Blackburn,  in  Lancashire,  at  19;  and  at  Manches- 
ter at  21,  20  and  18.  Thus  does  some  unknown  cir- 
cumstance strangely  overbalance  latitude,  and  render 
the  cold  sometimes  much  greater  in  the  southern 
than  in  the  northern  parts  of  this  kingdom. 

The  consequences  of  this  severity  were,  that  in 
Hampshire,  at  the  melting  of  the  snow,  the  wheat 
looked  well,  and  the  turnips  came  forth  little  injured. 
The  laurels  and  laurustines  were  somewhat  damaged, 
but  only  in  hot  aspects.  No  evergreens  were  quite 
destroyed  ;  and  not  half  the  damage  sustained  that 
befell  in  January  1768.  Those  laurels  that  were  a 
little  scorched  on  the  south  side  were  perfectly  un- 
touched on  their  north  sides.  The  care  taken  to 
shake  the  snow  day  by  day  from  the  branches  seemed 
greatly  to  avail  the  author's  evergreens.  A  neigh- 
bour's laurel-hedge,  in  a  high  situation,  and  facing 
to  the  north,  was  perfectly  green  and  vigorous  ;  and 
the  Portugal  laurels  remained  unhurt. 

As    to   the    birds ;    the   thrushes   and    blackbirds 
186 


were  mostly  destroyed  ;  and  the  partridges  were  so 
thinned  by  the  weather  and  poachers,  that  few  re- 
mained to  breed  the  following  year. 


LETTER    CVII. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

As  the  frost  in  December  1784  was  very  extraor- 
dinar}^  you,  I  trust,  will  not  be  displeased  to  hear 
the  particulars  ;  and  especially  when  I  promise  to 
say  no  more  about  the  severities  of  winter  after  I 
have  finished  this  letter. 

The  first  week  in  December  was  very  wet,  with 
the  barometer  very  low.  On  the  7th,  with  the  ba- 
rometer at  28  five-tenths,  came  on  a  vast  snow,  which 
continued  all  that  day  and  the  next,  and  most  part  of 
the  following  night;  so  that  by  the  morning  of  the 
9th  the  works  of  men  were  quite  overwhelmed,  the 
lanes  filled  so  as  to  be  impassable,  and  the  ground 
covered  twelve  or  fifteen  inches  without  any  drift- 
ing. In  the  evening  of  the  9th,  the  air  began  to  be 
so  very  sharp,  that  we  thought  it  would  be  curious 
to  attend  to  the  motions  of  a  thermometer  :  we  there- 
fore hung  out  two,  one  made  by  Martin  and  one  by 
DoUond,  which  soon  began  to  show  us  what  we  were 
to  expect;  for,  by  ten  o'clock,  they  fell  to  21,  and  at 

eleven,  to  4,  when  we  went  to  bed.     On  the  loth,  in 
30  187 


the  morning,  the  quicksilver  of  Dollond's  glass  was 
down  to  half  a  degree  below  zero ;  and  that  of  Mar- 
tin's, which  was  absurdly  graduated  only  to  four  de- 


The  vicarage  at  Netvton    Valence. 

grees  above  zero,  sank  quite  into  the  brass  guard  of 
the  ball  ;  so  that  when  the  weather  became  most  in- 
teresting, this  was  useless.  On  the  loth,  at  eleven  at 
night,  though  the  air  was  perfectly  still,  Dollond's 
glass  went  down  to  one  degree  below  zero !  This 
strange  severity  of  the  weather  made  me  very  desir- 
ous to  know  what  degree  of  cold  there  might  be  in 
such  an  exalted  and  near  situation  as  Newton.  We 
had  therefore,  on  the  morning  of  the  loth,  written  to 
Mr.  ,  and  entreated  him  to  hang  out  his  ther- 
mometer, made  by  Adams  ;  and  to  pay  some  attention 
to   it,   morning    and    evening;    expecting  wonderful 


phenomena,  in  so  elevated  a  region  as  two  hundred 
feet  or  more  above  my  house.  But,  behold  !  on  the 
loth,  at  eleven  at  night,  it  was  down  only  to  17°,  and 
the  next  morning  at  22°,  when  mine  was  at  10° !  We 
were  so  disturbed  at  this  unexpected  reverse  of  com- 
parative local  cold,  that   we   sent  one  of  my  glasses 

up,   thinking  that  of   Mr.   must,   somehow,    be 

wrongly  constructed.  But,  when  the  instruments 
came  to  be  confronted,  they  went  exactly  together  : 
so  that,  for  one  night  at  least,  the  cold  at  Newton 
was  18°  less  than  at  Selborne  ;  and,  through  the 
whole  frost,  10°  or  12°  ;  indeed,  when  we  came  to 
observe  the  consequences,  we  could  readily  credit 
this;  for  all  my  laurustines,  bays,  ilexes,  arbutuses, 
cypresses,  and  even  my  Portugal  laurels,  and  (which 
occasions  more  regret)  my  fine  sloping  laurel-hedge, 
were  scorched  up  ;  while,  at  Newton,  the  same  trees 
had  not  lost  a  leaf ! 

We  had  steady  frost  on  to  the  25th,  when  the  ther- 
mometer in  the  morning  was  down  to  10°  with  us, 
and  at  Newton  only  to  21°.  Strong  frost  continued 
till  the  31st,  when  some  tendency  to  thaw  was  ob- 
served ;  and  by  the  3rd  of  January,  1785,  the  thaw 
was  confirmed,  and  some  rain  fell. 

A  circumstance  that  I  must  not  omit,  because  it 
was  new  to  us,  is,  that  on  Friday,  December  the  loth, 
being  bright  sunshine,  the  air  was  full  of  icy  spiculse, 
floating  in  all  directions,  like  atoms  in  a  sunbeam  let 
into  a  dark  room.     We  thought  them,  at  first,  par- 


tides  of  the  rime  falling  from  my  tall  hedges  ;  but 
were  soon  convinced  to  the  contrary,  by  making  our 
observations  in  open  places  where  no  rime  could 
reach  us.  Were  they  watery  particles  of  the  air 
frozen  as  they  floated  ;  or  were  they  evaporations 
from  the  snow  frozen  as  thev  mounted  ? 

We  were  much  obliged  to  the  thermometers  for 
the  early  information  they  gave  us  ;  and  hurried  our 
apples,  pears,  onions,  &c.,  into  the  cellar,  and  warm 
closets;  while  those  who  had  not  such  warnings,  or 
neglected  them,  lost  all  their  stores  of  roots  and 
fruits,  and  had  their  very  bread  and  cheese  frozen. 

I  must  not  omit  to  tell  3'ou,  that,  during  those 
two  Siberian  days,  my  parlour-cat  was  so  electric, 
that  had  a  person  stroked  her,  and  been  properly  in- 
sulated, the  shock  might  have  been  given  to  a  whole 
circle  of  people. 

I  forgot  to  mention  before,  that,  during  the  two 
severe  days,  two  men,  who  were  tracking  hares  in 
the  snow,  had  their  feet  frozen  ;  and  two  others,  who 
were  much  better  employed,  had  their  fingers  so 
affected  by  the  frost,  while  they  were  thrashing  in  a 
barn,  that  a  mortification  followed,  from  which  they 
did  not  recover  for  many  weeks. 

This  frost  killed  all  the  furze  and  most  of  the  ivy, 
and  in  many  places  stripped  the  hollies  of  all  their 
leaves.  It  came  at  a  very  early  time  of  the  year,  be- 
fore old  November  ended  ;  and  yet  may  be  allowed 

from  its  effects  to  have  exceeded  any  since  1739-40. 

190 


LETTER    CVIII. 

To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

As  the  effects  of  heat  are  seldom  very  remarkable 
ill  the  northerly  climate  of  England,  where  the  sum- 
mers are  often  so  defective  in  warmth  and  sunshine 
as  not  to  ripen  the  fruits  oi  the  earth  so  well  as  might 
be  wished,  I  shall  be  more  concise  in  my  account  of 
the  intensity  of  a  summer  season,  and  so  make  a  little 
amends  for  the  prolix  account  of  the  degrees  of  cold, 
and  the  inconveniences  that  we  suffered  from  some 
late  rigorous  winters. 

The   summers  of   1781   and    1783   were  unusually 

hot  and  dr}^ ;  to  them  therefore  I  shall  turn  back  in 

my  journals,  without   recurring  to  any  more  distant 

period.     In  the  former  of  these   years  my  peach   and 

nectarine  trees  suffered   so  much  from  the  heat,  that 

the  rind  on  the  bodies  were  scalded  and  came  off ; 

since  which  the  trees  have   been  in  a  decaying  state. 

This  may   prove   a  hint  to    assiduous   gardeners  to 

fence  and  shelter  their  wall-trees  with  mats  or  boards, 

as  they  may   easily   do,  because  such  annoyance  is 

seldom  of  long  continuance.     During   that  summer, 

also,  I  observed  that  my  apples   were  coddled,   as  it 

were,   on   the  trees  ;  so  that  they  had   no  quickness 

of  flavour,  and  they  did  not  keep  in  the  winter.    This 

circumstance  put  me  in  mind  of  what  I  have  heard 

travellers  assert,  that  they  never  ate  a  good  apple,  or 

191 


apricot,  in  the  south  of  Europe,  where  the  heats 
are  so  great  as  to  render  the  juices  vapid  and  insipid. 

The  great  pests  of  a  garden  are  wasps,  which 
destroy  all  the  finer  fruits,  just  as  they  are  coming 
into  perfection.  In  1781  we  had  none;  in  1783  there 
were  myriads  ;  which  would  have  devoured  all  the 
produce  of  my  garden,  had  not  we  set  the  boys  to 
take  the  nests  ;  we  caught  thousands  with  hazel-twigs 
tipped  with  bird-lime :  and  have  since  employed  the 
boys  to  take  and  destroy  the  large  breeding  wasps  in 
the  spring.  Such  expedients  have  a  great  effect  on 
these  marauders,  and  will  keep  them  under.  Though 
wasps  do  not  abound  but  in  hot  summers,  yet  they 
do  not  prevail  then,  as  I  have  instanced  in  the  two 
years  above  mentioned. 

In  the  sultry  season  of  1783,  honey-dews  were  so 
frequent  as  to  deface  and  destroy  the  beauties  of  my 
garden.  My  honeysuckles,  which  were  one  week  the 
most  sweet  and  lovely  objects  that  the  eye  could  be- 
hold, became,  the  next,  the  most  loathsome ;  being 
enveloped  in  a  viscous  substance,  and  loaded  with 
black  aphides,  or  smother-flies.  The  occasion  of  this 
clammy  appearance  seems  to  be  this,  that,  in  hot 
weather,  the  effluvia  of  flowers  in  fields,  and  mead- 
ows, and  gardens  are  drawn  up  in  the  day  by  a  brisk 
evaporation,  and  then  in  the  night  fall  down  again 
with  the  dews,  in  which  they  are  entangled  ;  that 
the  air  is  strongly  scented,  and  therefore  impregnated 

with  the  particles  of  flowers  in  summer  weather,  our 

192 


senses  will  inform  us;  and  that  this  sweet  clammy 
substance  is  of  the  vegetable  kind  we  may  learn  from 
bees,  to  whom  it  is  very  grateful :  we  may  also  be 
assured  that  it  falls  in  the  night,  because  it  is  always 
first  seen  in  still  warm  mornings. 

On  chalky  and  sandy  soils,  and  in  the  hot  villages 
about  London,  the  thermometer  has  been  often  ob- 
served to  mount  as  high  as  83  or  84 ;  but  with  us,  in 
this  hilly  and  woody  district,  I  have  hardly  ever  seen 
it  exceed  80 ;  nor  does  it  often  arrive  at  that  pitch. 
The  reason,  I  conclude,  is,  that  our  dense  clayey  soil, 
so  much  shaded  by  trees,  is  not  so  easily  heated 
through  as  those  above  mentioned  :  and  besides,  our 
mountains  cause  currents  of  air  and  breezes ;  and  the 
vast  evaporation  from  our  woodlands  tempers  and 
moderates  our  heats. 


LETTER    CIX. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

The  summer  of  the  year  1783  v>^as  an  amazing 
and  a  portentous  one,  and  full  of  horrible  phenom- 
ena ;  for,  besides  the  alarming  meteors  and  tremen- 
dous thunderstorms  that  affrighted  and  distressed 
the  different  counties  of  this  kingdom,  the  peculiar 
haze,  or  smoky  fog,  that  prevailed  for  many  weeks 
in  this  island,  and  in  every  part  of  Europe,  and  even 

193 


beyond  its  limits,  was  a  most  extraordinary  appear- 
ance, unlike  anything  known  within  the  memory  of 
man.  By  my  journal  I  find  that  I  had  noticed  this 
strange  occurrence  from  June  23  to  July  20  inclu- 
sive, during  which  period  the  wind  varied  to  every 
quarter  without  making  any  alteration  in  the  air. 
The  sun,  at  noon,  looked  as  blank  as  a  clouded 
moon,  and  shed  a  rust-coloured,  ferruginous  light 
on  the  ground,  and  floors  of  rooms  ;  but  was  par- 
ticularly lurid  and  blood-coloured  at  rising  and  set- 
ting. All  the  time  the  heat  was  so  intense,  that 
butchers'  meat  could  hardly  be  eaten  on  the  day 
after  it  was  killed  ;  and  the  flies  swarmed  so  in  the 
lanes  and  hedges  that  they  rendered  the  horses 
half  frantic,  and  riding  irksome.  The  country  peo- 
ple began  to  look  with  a  superstitious  awe  at  the 
red  louring  aspect  of  the  sun ;  and  indeed  there 
Avas  reason  for  the  most  enlightened  person  to  be 
apprehensive  ;  for,  all  the  while  Calabria  and  part 
of  the  isle  of  Sicily,  were  torn  and  convulsed  with 
earthquakes ;  and  about  that  juncture  a  volcano 
sprung  out  of  the  sea  on  the  coast  of  Norway.  On 
this  occasion  Milton's  noble  simile  of  the  sun,  in  his 
first  book  of  "  Paradise  Lost,"  frequently  occurred 
to  my  mind  ;  and  it  is  indeed  particularly  applica- 
ble, because,  towards  the  end,  it  alludes  to  a  super- 
stitious kind  of  dread,  with  which  the  minds  of 
men  are  always  impressed  by  such  strange  and  un- 
usual phenomena. 

194 


—  —  —  As  when  the  sun,  new  risen, 
Looks  through  the  horizontal,  misty  air, 
Shorn  of  his  beams  ;  or  from  behind  the  moon, 
In  dim  eclipse,  disastrous  twilight  sheds 
On  half  the  nations,  and  with  fear  of  change 
Perplexes  monarchs  —  —  —  — " 


LETTER    ex. 
To  THE  Honourable  Daines  Barrington. 

We  are  very  seldom  annoyed  with  thunder- 
storms ;  and  it  is  no  less  remarkable  than  true,  that 
those  which  arise  in  the  south  have  hardly  been 
known  to  reach  this  village ;  for,  before  they  get 
over  us,  they  take  a  direction  to  the  east,  or  to  the 
west,  or  sometimes  divide  into  two,  and  go  in  part  to 
one  of  those  quarters,  and  in  part  to  the  other ;  as 
was  truly  the  case  in  the  sunimer  of  1783,  when, 
though  the  country  round  was  continually  harassed 
with  tempests,  and  often  from  the  south ;  yet  we 
escaped  them  all,  as  appears  by  my  journal  of  that 
summer.*     The  only  way  that  I  can  at  all  account 

*  Storms. — To  this  awful  summer  of  1783,  Cowper  also  alludes  in  his 
"  Task,"  book  ii.  p.  41  : — 

" A  world  that  seems 

To  toll  the  death-bell  of  its  own  decease  ; 
And  by  the  voice  of  all  the  elements 
To  preach  the  general  doom." 

195 


for  this  fact — for  such  it  is — is  that  on  that  quarter 
between  us  and  the  sea  there  are  continual  moun- 
tains, hill  behind  hill,  such  as  Nore-hill,  the  Barnet, 
Butser-hill,  and  Ports-down,  which  somehow  divert 
the  storms,  and  give  them  a  different  direction. 
High  promontories  and  elevated  grounds  have  al- 
ways been  observed  to  attract  clouds,  and  disarm 
them  of  their  mischievous  contents,  which  are  dis- 
charged into  the  trees  and  summits  as  soon  as  they 
come  in  contact  with  those  turbulent  meteors  ;  while 
the  humble  vales  escape,  because  they  are  so  far  be- 
neath them. 

But  when  I  say  I  do  not  remember  a  thunder- 
storm from  the  south,  I  do  not  mean  that  we  never 
have  suffered  from  thunderstorms  at  all;  for  on  June 
5th,  1784,  the  thermometer  in  the  morning  being  at 
64°,  and  at  noon  at  70°,  the  barometer  at  29°— six- 
tenths  one-half,  and  the  wind  north,  I  observed  a 
blue  mist,  smelling  strongly  of  sulphur,  hanging 
along  our  sloping  woods,  and  seeming  to  indicate 
that  thunder  was  at  hand.  I  was  called  in  about 
two  in  the  afternoon,  and  so  missed  seeing  the  gath- 
ering of  the  clouds  in  the  north  ;  which  they  who 
were  abroad  assured  me  had  something  uncommon 
in  its  appearance.  At  about  a  quarter  after  two,  the 
storm  began  in  the  parish  of  Hartley,  moving  slowly 
from  north  to  south  ;  and  from  thence  it  came  over 
Norton-farm,  and    so    to    Grange-farm,  both   in  this 

parish.    It  began  with  vast  drops  of  rain,  which  were 

196 


soon  succeeded  by  round  hail,  and  then  by  convex 
pieces  of  ice,  which  measured  three  inches  in  girth. 
Had  it  been  as  extensive  as  it  was  violent,  and  of 
any  continuance  (for  it  was  very  short),  it  must  have 
ravaged  all  the  neighbourhood.  In  the  parish  of 
Hartley  it  did  some  damage  to  one  farm  ;  but  Nor- 
ton, which  lay  in  the  centre  of  the  storm,  was  greatly 
injured  ;  as  was  Grange,  which  lay  next  to  it.  It  did 
but  just  reach  to  the  middle  of  the  village,  where  the 
hail  broke  my  north  windows,  and  all  my  garden- 
lights  and  hand-glasses,  and  many  of  my  neighbours' 
windows.  The  extent  of  the  storm  was  about  two 
miles  in  length  and  one  in  breadth.  We  were  just 
sitting  down  to  dinner;  but  were  soon  diverted  from 
our  repast  by  the  clattering  of  tiles  and  the  jingling 
of  glass.  There  fell  at  the  same  time  prodigious 
torrents  of  rain  on  the  farms  above  mentioned, 
which  occasioned  a  fiood  as  violent  as  it  was  sud- 
den ;  doing  great  damage  to  the  meadows  and  fal- 
lows, by  deluging  the  one  and  washing  away  the 
soil  of  the  other.  The  hollow  lane  towards  Alton 
was  so  torn  and  disordered  as  not  to  be  passable 
till  mended,  rocks  being  removed  that  weighed  two 
hundred-weight.  Those  that  saw  the  effect  which 
the  great  hail  had  on  ponds  and  pools,  say  that  the 
dashing  of  the  water  made  an  extraordinar}^  appear- 
ance, the  froth  and  spray  standing  up  in  the  air  three 
feet  above  the  surface.     The  rushing  and  roaring  of 

the  hail  as  it  approached  was  truly  tremendous. 

197 


Though  the  clouds  at  South  Lambeth,  near  Lon- 
don, were  at  that  juncture  thin  and  light,  and  no 
storm  was  in  sight,  nor  within  hearing,  yet  the  air 
was  strongly  electric;  for  the  bells  of  an  electric 
machine  at  that  place  rang  repeatedly,  and  fierce 
sparks  were  discharged. 

When  I  first  took  the  present  work  in  hand  I 
proposed  to  have  added  an  Annus  Historico-7iatnralis ; 
or,  The  Natural  History  of  the  Twelve  Months  of  the 
Year ;  which  would  have  comprised  many  incidents 
and  occurrences  that  have  not  fallen  in  my  way  to 
be  mentioned  in  my  series  of  letters ;  but  as  Mr. 
Aikin  of  Warrington  has  published  somewhat  of  this 
sort,  and  as  the  length  of  my  correspondence  has 
sufficiently  put  your  patience  to  the  test,  I  shall  here 
take  a  respectful  leave  of  you  and  natural  history 
together ;  and  am. 

With  all  due  deference  and  regard, 
Your  most  obliged. 

And  most  humble  Servant, 

Gil.  White. 

Selborne,  June  25,  1787. 


198 


NEW    LETTERS. 

THE    INVITATION:     TO    SAMUEL    BARKER. 

Ne  percuncteris,  fundus  meus,  optime  Quiiicti, 
Arvo  pascat  herum,  an  baccis  opulentet  olivas, 
Pomisne  et  pratis,  an  amicta  vitibus  ulmo : 
Scribetur  tibi  forma  loquaciter,  et  situs  agri. 

See,  Selborne  spreads  her  boldest  beauties  found, 
The  vary'd  valley,  and  the  mountain-ground 
Wildly  majestic :  what  is  all  the  pride 
Of  flats,  with  loads  of  ornament  supply 'd  ? 
Unpleasing,  tasteless,  impotent  expence, 
Compar'd  with  Nature's  rude  magnificence. 

Oft  on  some  evening,  sunny,  soft,  and  still, 

The  Muse  shall  hand  thee  to  the  beech-grown  hill, 

To  spend  in  tea  the  cool,  refreshful  hour. 

Where  nods  in  air  the  pensile,  nest-like  bower : 

Or  where  the  Hermit  hangs  his  straw-clad  cell. 

Emerging  gently  from  the  leafy  dell : 

Romantic  spot !  from  whence  in  prospect  lies 

Whate'er  of  landscape  charms  our  feasting  eyes ; 

199 


The  pointed  spire,  the  hall,  the  pasture-plain, 
The  russet  fallow,  and  the  golden  grain  ; 
The  breezy  lake  that  sheds  a  gleaming  light, 
'Til  all  the  fading  picture  fails  the  sight. 

Each  to  his  task  :  all  different  ways  retire  ; 
Cull  the  dry  stick ;  call  forth  the  seeds  of  fire ; 
Deep  fix  the  nettle's  props,  a  forky  row ; 
Or  give  with  fanning  hat  one  breeze  to  blow. 

Whence  is  this  taste,  the  furnish 'd  hall  forgot. 
To  feast  in  gardens,  or  th'  unhandy  grot? 
Or  novelty  with  some  new  charms  surprises; 
Or  from  our  very  shifts  some  joy  arises. 

Hark,  while  below  the  village  bells  ring  round. 
Echo,  sweet  Nymph,  returns  the  soften'd  sound  : 
But  if  gusts  rise,  the  rushing  forests  roar, 
Like  the  tide  tumbling  on  the  pebbly  shore. 
Adown  the  vale,  in  lone  sequester'd  nook, 
Where  skirting  woods  imbrown  the  dimpling  brook, 
The  ruin'd  Abbey  lies:  here  wont  to  dwell  * 
The  lazy  monk  within  his  cloister'd  cell ; 
While  papal  darkness  brooded  o'er  the  land  ; 
Ere  Reformation  made  her  glorious  stand : 
Still  oft  at  eve  belated  shepherd-swains 
See  the  cowl'd  spectre  skim  the  folded  plains. 

To  the  high  Temple  would  my  stranger  go,  t 
Whose  mountain-brow  commands  the  groves  below? 


*  The   ruins  of  a   Priory  founded  by    Peter  de   Rupibus,    Bishop    ot 
Winton. 

f  The    remains    of  a    supposed    lodge     belonging    to    the     Knights 
Templars. 


200 


In  Jewry  first  this  order  found  a  name, 

When  madding  Croisades  set  the  world  in  flame ; 

When  western  climes,  urg'd  on  by  Pope  and  priest, 

Pour'd  forth  their  millions  o'er  the  delug'd  east: 

Luxurious  Knights,  ill  suited  to  defy 

To  mortal  fight  Turcestan  chivalry. 

Nor  be  the  Parsonage  by  the  Muse  forgot : 
The  partial  bard  admires  his  native  spot; 
Smit  with  its  beauties  lov'd,  as  yet  a  child. 
Unconscious  why,  its  'scapes  grotesque  and  wild : 
High  on  a  mound  th'  exalted  gardens  stand  ; 
Beneath,  deep  valleys  scoop'd  by  Nature's  hand  ! 

Now  climb  the  steep,  drop  now  your  eye  below, 
Where  round  the  verdurous  village  orchards  blow  ; 
There,  like  a  picture,  lies  my  lowly  seat, 
A  rural,  shelter'd,  unobserv'd  retreat. 

Me,  far  above  the  rest,  Selbornian  scenes. 
The  pendent  forest,  and  the  mountain-greens. 
Strike  with   delight :  .  .  .  there  spreads  the  distant 

view 
That  gradual  fades,  'til  sunk  in  misty  blue : 
Here  Nature  hangs  her  slopy  woods  to  sight. 
Rills  purl  between,  and  dart  a  wavy  light. 

When  deep'ning  shades  obscure  the  face  of  day, 
To  yonder  bench  leaf-shelter'd  let  us  stray. 
To  hear  the  drowzy  dor  come  brushing  by 
With  buzzing  wing ;  or  the  field-cricket  cry  ; 
To  see  the  feeding  bat  glance  thro'  the  wood  ; 
Or  catch  the  distant  falling  of  the  flood  : 


20I 


While  high  in  air,  and  poised  upon  his  wings 

Unseen,  the  soft  enamour'd  wood-lark  sings :  * 

These,  Nature's  works,  the  curious  mind  employ, 

Inspire  a  soothing,  melancholy  joy  : 

As  fancy  warms  a  pleasing  kind  of  pain 

Steals  o'er  the  cheek,  and  thrills  the  creeping  vein ! 

Each    rural   sight,  each    sound,  each   smell  com- 
bine ; 
The  tinkling  sheep-bell,  or  the  breath  of  kine ; 
The  new-mown  hay  that  scents  the  swelling  breeze. 
Or  cottage-chimney  smoking  thro'  the  trees. 

The  chilling  night-dews  fall :  .  .  .  .  away,  retire. 
What  time  the  glow-worm  lights  her  amorous  fire,  f 


Selborne  :  Xov:  3:  1774. 

Dear  Sam, 

When  I  sat  down  to  write  to  you  in  verse,  my 
whole  design  was  to  shew  you  at  once  how  easy  a 
thing  it  might  be  with  a  little  care  for  a  Nephew  to 
excell  his  Uncle  in  the  business  of  versification  :  but 
as  you  have  fully  answered  that  intent  by  your  late 
excellent  lines;  you  must  for  the  future  excuse  my 
replying  in  the  same  way,  and  make  some  allowance 
for  the  difference  of  our  ages. 

*  In   hot  summer  nights  woodlarks  soar  to  a  prodigious  height,  and 
hang  singing  in  the  air. 

f  The  light  of  the  glow-worm  is  a  signal  to  her  paramour,  a  slender 
dusky  scarab. 

202 


However,  when  at  any  time  you  find  y""  muse 
propitious,  I  shall  always  rejoice  to  see  a  copy  of 
y'^  performance ;  and  shall  be  ready  to  commend  ; 
and  what  is  more  rare,  yet  more  sincere,  even  to 
object  and  criticize  where  there  is  occasion. 

A  little  turn  for  English  poetry  is  no  doubt  a 
pretty  accomplishment  for  a  young  Gent:  and  will 
not  only  enable  him  the  better  to  read  and  relish  our 
best  poets ;  but  will,  like  dancing  to  the  body,  have 
an  happy  influence  even  on  his  prose  compositions. 
Our  best  poets  have  been  our  best  prose-writers :  of 
this  assertion  Dryden  and  Pope  are  notorious  in- 
stances. It  would  be  in  vain  to  think  of  saying 
much  here  on  the  art  of  versification:  instead  of  the 
narrow  limits  of  a  letter  such  a  subject  would  re- 
quire a  large  volume.  However,  I  may  say  in  few 
words,  that  the  way  to  excell  is  to  copy  only  from 
our  best  writers.  The  great  grace  of  poetry  con- 
sists in  a  perpetual  variation  of  y""  cadences :  if  pos- 
sible no  two  lines  following  ought  to  have  their 
pause  at  the  same  foot.  Another  beauty  should  not 
be  passed  over,  and  that  is  the  use  of  throwing  the 
sense  and  pause  into  the  third  line,  which  add  a 
dignity  and  freedom  to  }'"  expressions.  Dryden  in- 
troduced this  practice,  and  carryed  it  to  great  per- 
fection :  but  his  successor  Pope,  by  his  over  exact- 
ness, corrected  away  that  noble  liberty,  and  almost 
reduced  every  sentence   within   the  narrow  bounds 

of  a  couplet.     Alliteration,  or  the  art  of  introducing 
31  203 


words  beginning-  with  the  same  letter  in  the  same  or 
following  line,  has  also  a  fine  effect  when  managed 
with  discretion.  Dryden  and  Pope  practised  this 
art  with  wonderful  success.  As,  for  example,  where 
you  say  "The  polish'd  beetle,"  .  .  the  epithet  "  bur- 
nish'd  "  would  be  better  for  the  reason  above.  But 
then  you  must  avoid  affectation  in  this  case,  and  let 
the  alliteration  slide-in  as  it  were  without  design  : 
and  this  secret  will  make  your  lines  appear  bold  and 
nervous. 

There  are  also  in  poetry  allusions,  similes,  and  a 
thousand  nameless  graces,  the  efficacy  of  which  noth- 
ing can  make  you  sensible  of  but  the  careful  reading 
of  our  best  poets,  and  a  nice  and  judicious  applica- 
tion of  their  beauties.  I  need  not  add  that  you 
should  be  careful  to  seem  not  to  take  any  pains 
about  y""  rhimes ;  they  should  fall-in  as  it  were  of 
themselves.  Our  old  poets  laboured  as  much  for- 
merly to  lug-in  two  chiming  words,  as  a  butcher  does 
to  drag  an  ox  to  be  slaughtered :  but  Mr.  Pope  has 
set  such  a  pattern  of  ease  in  that  way,  that  few  com- 
posers now  are  faulty  in  the  business  of  rhiming. 
When  I  have  the  pleasure  of  meeting  you  we  will 
talk  over  these  and  many  other  matters  too  copious 
for  an  Epistle.  I  had  like  to  have  forgotten  to  add 
that  Jack  copied  your  verses  and  sent  them  to  y"" 
Uncle  John  who  commended  them  much  :  you  will 
be  pleased  to  be  commended  by  one  that  is  the  best 

performer  and   the   best    critic    in    that   way   that   I 

204 


know.     With    respects    to  your   father    and  mother 
and  all  the  family, 

I  remain  Y'^  affect :  Uncle,  Gil  :  White. 
Nanny  White  mends  apace  :  she  is  still  at  New- 
ton. 


To  Mrs.  Barker. 

Selborne:  Dec:  25:  78. 

Dear  Sister, 

My  Nep :  Edm^  who  is  now  at  Newton,  brings 
a  most  sad  account  of  his  mother,  whose  state  of 
health  is  very  deplorable,  and  her  infirmities  and 
sufferings  very  great.  As  to  our  poor  brother  in 
Lancashire,  I  have  not  heard  from  him  for  some 
time  :  the  last  account  was  but  bad. 

Next  week  we  expect  at  this  place  a  great  riavi- 
gator,  or  rather  navigatress,  who  within  these  20 
months  has  sailed  20,000  miles.  The  person  alluded 
to  is  Miss  Shutter,  Mrs.  Etty's  niece,  who  set  out  for 
Madras  in  March,  1777;  and  returning  to  Europe 
this  autumn  in  the  Carnatic  India-man,  was  taken  by 
her  own  countrymen  near  the  coast  of  France  and 
carried  to  the  downs,  and  landed  at  Deal.  This 
Lady  appears  in  great  splendor  ;  and  is,  it  is  sup- 
posed, to  be  married  to  a  Gent :  now  on  the  seas  in 
his  way  from  Lidia.  Bad  fevers  and  sore  throats 
obtain  much  in  these  parts,  and   many  children  die. 

A  person  at  Harkley  buryed  three,  his  whole  stock, 

205 


in  one  grave  last  Tuesday.  When  I  was  down  at 
Ringmer  I  found  that  district  was  sickly.  Mrs.  Sn : 
wrote  herself  some  time  since,  and  did  not  complain 
of  any  particular  infirmities.  My  great  parlor  turns 
out  a  fine  warm  winter-room,  and  affords  a  pleasant 
equal  warmth.  In  blustering  weather  the  chimney 
smokes  a  little  'til  the  shaft  becomes  hot.  The  chief 
fault  that  I  find  is  the  strong  echo,  which,  when 
many  people  are  talking,  makes  confusion  to  my 
poor  dull  ears.  Your  money  is  disposed  of  among 
poor  neighbours.  I  have  no  doubt  but  that  y"*  son 
will  turn  out  a  valuable  young  man  ;  and  will  be  far 
from  being  injured  by  a  public  education.  "  Omnes 
omnia  bona  dicere,  et  laudare  fortunas  tuas,  qui 
filium  haberes  tali  ingenio  prasditum."  With  re- 
spects and  the  good  wishes  of  the  season  I  remain 
Your  affect :  brother, 

Gil:  White. 


Dear  Niece  Anne, 

After  I  had  experienced  the  advantage  of  two 

agreeable    young   house-keepers,    I   was    much    at   a 

loss  when  they  left  me  ;  and  have  nobody  to  make 

whipp'd  syllabubs,  and  grace  the  upper  end  of  my 

table.     Molly  and  her  father  came  again,  and  stayed 

near  a  month,  during  which  we   made  much  use  of 

my  great  room  :    but  they  also  have  left  me  some 

time.     Whether  they  carryed-off  any  Ladies  Traces  I 

206 


cannot  recollect :  but  it  is  easy  to  distinguish  them 
at  this  season  ;  for  soon  after  they  are  out  of  bloom 
they  throw-out  radical  leaves,  which  abide  all  the 
winter.  The  plant  is  rare ;  but  happens  to  abound 
in  the  Long  Lithe,  and  will  be  enumerated  in  the  list 
of  more  rare  plants  about  Selborne.  1  wish  we  could 
say  we  had  y^  Parnasia:  I  have  sowed  seeds  in  our 
bogs  several  times,  but  to  no  purpose.  Please  to  let 
me  know  how  many  inches  of  rain  fell  in  the  late  wet 
fit,  which  lasted  about  5  weeks.  The  springs  from 
being  very  low  mounted-up  to  a  vast  rate  ;  and  our 
lavants  at  Faringdon  began  to  appear  last  week.  My 
Bar"-  is  this  evening  at  30  -  3  -  1O34,  the  air  thick,  and 
warm,  and  still.  Hepaticas  and  winter-aconites  blos- 
som ;  and  Helleboriis  fa^tidus  in  the  HigJi-wood,  another 
rare  plant.  The  clouds  are  all  gone  ;  and  we  may 
expect  frost. 

We  have  here  this  winter  a  weekly  concert  con- 
sisting of  a  first  and  second  fiddle,  two  repianos,  a 
bassoon,  an  haut-boy,  a  violincello,  and  a  German- 
flute  ;  to  the  great  annoyance  of  the  neighbouring 
pigs,  which  complain  that  their  slumbers  are  inter- 
rupted, and  their  teeth  set  on  edge. 


207 


To  Miss  Anne  Barker, 

Selborne  :  Feb:  ^th  :  1785. 

Dear  Niece, 

I  was  just  thinking  to  write 
to  somebody  in  your  family,  when 
your  agreeable  letter  came  in. 

As  the  late  frost  was  attended 
with  some  unusual  circumstances, 
your  father,  I  trust,  will  not  be  Apr 
displeased  to  hear  the  particulars. 
The  first  week  in  Dec''  was  very 
wet,  with  the  Barom^"  very  low. 
On  the  7th  with  the  Bar :  at  28  - 
5-10:  there  came  on  a  vast 
snow,  which  continued  all  that 
day  and  the  next,  and  most  part 
of  the  following  night ;  so  that  by 
the  morning  of  the  9th  the  works 
of  men  were  quite  overwhelmed,  the  lanes  filled  so 
as  to  be  rendered  impassable,  and  the  ground  cov- 
ered 12  or  14  inches  where  there  was  no  drifting. 
In  the  evening  of  the  9th  the  air  began  to  be  so 
very  sharp  that  we  thought  it  would  be  curious  to 
attend  to  the  motions  of  a  Therms  We  therefore 
hung  out  two,  one  made  by  Martin  and  one  by 
Dolland,  w^hich  soon  began  to  shew  us  what  we 
w^ere  to  expect.     For  by   10  o'clock  they  fell  to  21  : 

— and  at  1 1^ :  to  4,  when  we  went  to  bed.     On  the 

208 


RAIN   AT 

SELBORNE 

IN 

1784. 

inc 

:  :h 

Jan  : 

3  • 

:  18 

Feb: 

—  0  : 

:  77 

Mar  : 

3  • 

:  82 

Apr  : 

—  3  : 

:  92 

May 

—   I  : 

:  52 

June 

3  ■ 

:65 

July 

—  2  : 

:  40 

Aug: 

—  3  : 

:  88 

Sept'- 

—  2  : 

:  51 

Octr 

—  0  : 

:  39 

Nov 

—  4 

:  70 

Dec- 

—  3 

:     6 

Total     -^i  : 

:  80 

loth  in  the  morning  DoUand's  glass  was  down  to 
half  a  degree  below  zero;  and  Martin's,  which  ab- 
surdly was  graduated  only  to  4  above  zero,  was 
quite  into  the  ball :  so  that  when  the  w^eather  be- 
came most  interesting,  it  was  quite  useless.  On  the 
loth  at  eleven  at  night,  tho'  the  air  w^as  perfectly 
still,  DoUand's  glass  went  down  to  i  degree  below 
zero  I  This  strange  severity  had  made  my  Bro :  and 
me  very  desirous  to  know  what  degree  of  cold  there 
might  be  in  such  an  exalted  situation  as  Newton: 
We  had  therefore  on  the  morning  of  the  loth  written 
to  Mrs.  Yalden,  and  entreated  her  to  hang-out  her 
Therm""  made  by  Adams  ;  and  to  pay  some  attention 
to  it  morning,  and  evening,  expecting  wonderful 
doings  in  so  elevated  a  region.  But  behold  on  the 
loth,  at  II  at  Night  it  was  down  only  to  19  !  and  the 
next  morning  at  22,  when  mine  was  at  10!  We  were 
so  disturbed  at  this  unexpected  reverse  of  comparative 
local  cold,  that  we  sent  one  of  my  glasses  up,  think- 
ing Mr.  Y  :'s  must,  some  how  be  constructed  wrong. 
But  when  the  instruments  came  to  be  confronted, 
they  went  exactly  together.  So  that  for  one  night 
at  least,  the  cold  at  N  :  was  20  degrees  less  than  at 
S :  and  the  whole  frost  thro'  ten  or  twelve.  And 
indeed,  when  we  came  to  observe  consequences,  we 
could  readily  suppose  it.  For  all  my  laurustines, 
bays,  Ilexis,  and  what  is  much  worse  my  fine  sloping 
laurel-hedge,  are  all  scorched  up,  and  dead  !  while  at 

Newton  the  same   trees  have  not  lost  a  leaf !     We 

209 


had  steady  frost  on  to  the  25th  when  the  therm''  in 
the  morning  was  down  to  10  with  us,  and  at  Newton 
only  to  21  !  Strong  frost  continued  till  the  31st  when 
some  tendency  to  thaw  was  observed  :  and  by  Jan : 
3rd  :  1785  the  thaw  was  confirmed,  and  some  rain 
fell.  There  was  a  circumstance  that  I  must  not  omit, 
because  it  was  new  to  my  brother  and  me  ;  which 
was  that  on  Friday,  DeC  loth,  being  bright  sun- 
shine, the  air  was  full  of  icy  spiculse,  floating  in  all 
directions,  like  atoms  in  a  sun-beam  let  into  a  dark 
room.  We  thought  at  first  that  they  might  have 
been  particles  of  the  rime  falling  from  my  tall 
hedges  :  but  were  soon  convinced  to  the  contrary 
by  making  our  observations  in  open  places,  where 
no  rime  could  reach  us.  Were  they  the  watry 
particles  of  the  air  frozen  as  they  floated  ;  or  were 
they  the  evaporations  from  the  snow  frozen  as  they 
mounted  ?  We  were  much  obliged  to  the  Therm""  for 
y^  early  intimations  that  they  gave  us  ;  and  hurryed 
our  apples,  pears,  onions,  potatoes,  &c.,  into  the  cel- 
lar, and  warm  closets :  while  those,  that  had  not 
these  warnings,  lost  all  their  stores,  and  had  their 
very  bread  and  cheese  frozen.  For  my  own  part, 
having  a  house  full  of  relations,  I  enjoyed  the  rigor- 
ous season  much  ;  and  found  full  employ  in  shovel- 
ing a  path  round  my  outlet,  and  up  to  Newton  ;  and 
in  observing  the  Therm''%  &c  :  and  was  only  sorry 
for  the  poor  and  aged,  who  suffered  much.  I  must 
not  omit  to  tell  you,  that  during  those  two  Siberian 


210 


days  my  parlor-cat  was  so  electric,  when  stroked, 
that  had  the  Stroker  been  properly  insulated,  he 
might  have  given  the  shock  to  a  whole  circle  of 
people.  Bro :  Tho  :  and  family  left  us  Jan:  5th. 
The  morning  before  he  went  away  his  house  at  S  : 
Lambeth  was  assaulted  by  three  villains,  one  of 
whom  his  Gardener  shot  thro'  the  body  with  slugs 
from  the  parapet  just  as  they  were  entering  the 
drawing-room.  Mrs.  and  Miss  Etty  are  well  ;  and 
Charles  just  gone  to  attend  his  ship  in  the  river, 
which  sails  in  March.  Mr.  Rich^  Chase  is  released 
from  his  3  years  and  \  captivity  in  India,  and  is  re- 
turned to  Madras.  Magd  :  Coll :  has  just  purchased 
the  little  life-hold  estate  on  the  Plestor,  in  reversion 
after  two  lives,  intending  hereafter  to  make  it  glebe 
to  the  vicarage.  Tell  y  Mother  I  thank  her  for  her 
gift,  which  will  be  very  acceptable  to  the  poor  :  and 
y""  Father,  that  I  should  be  glad  to  see  Jiis  account  of 
rain,  frost,  &c.  I  advise  y'^  Father  and  Bro""  to  read 
S""  John  Cullun's  History  of  Hawsted,  the  parish 
where  he  is  Rector.  Mrs.  J.  White  joins  in  respects. 
Y^  loving  Uncle,  Gil  :  White. 

Mr.  Yalden,  poor  man,  is  in  a  bad  state  of  health, 
and  is  gone  to  town  for  advice.  Ch  :  Etty's  new  ship 
is  named  the  Duke  of  Montrose,  Cap  :  Elphinstone  :  all 
the  officers  are  Scotch  except  Ch  :  I  have  met  with 
Will:  Bercarius,  which  name  signifies  shepherd :  hence 
the  modern  name  of  Barker.     Men  are  cuttino-  the 

o 
211 


beeches  at  the  top  of  the  hill ;  but  not  those  on  the 
hanger  this  year.  We  shall  lose  the  beautiful  fringe 
that  graces  the  outline  of  our  prospect  that  way  :  but 
shall  gain  60  feet  of  Horizon.  Jupiter  wests  so  fast 
that  at  sun-set  he  is  not  much  above  these  trees. 
Snow  covers  the  ground. 


To  Thomas  Barker,  Esq. 

Selborne,  Jan:  1st:  1791. 

Dear  Sir, 

As  the  year  1790  is  just  at  an  end,  I  send  you 
the  rain  of  that  period,  which,  I  trust,  has  been  regu- 
larly measured.  Nov.  and  Dec.  as 
you  see,  were  very  wet,  with  many 
storms,  that  in  various  places  had  oc- 
casioned much  damage.  The  fall  of 
rain  from  Nov.  19  to  the  22,  inclusive, 
was  prodigious  !  The  thunder  storm 
on  Dec.  23  in  the  morning  before  day 
was  very  aweful :  but,  I  thank  God,  it 
did  not  do  us  any  the  least  harm. 
Two  millers,  in  a  wind-mill  on  the 
Sussex  downs  near  Good-wood,  were 

struck   dead   by   lisrhtninof  that  morn- 

.  .  3227 

ing  ;  and  part  of  the  gibbet  on  Hind- 
head,  on  which  two  murderers  were  suspended,  was 
beaten    down.      I   am   not  sure   that   I    was  awaked 


RAIN  IN 

1790. 

Jan  : 

199 

Feb: 

40 

Mar 

45 

Ap: 

364 

May 

438 

June 

13 

July 

324 

Aug. 

230 

Sept. 

66 

Oct. 

210 

Nov. 

695 

Dec. 

594 

soon  enough  to  hear  the  whole  storm  :  between  the 
flashes  that  I  saw  and  the  thunder,  I  counted  from 
lo  to  14  seconds. 

In  consequence  of  my  Nat.  Hist.  I  continue  to 
receive  various  letters  from  various  parts ;  and  in 
particular  from  a  Mr.  Marsham  of  Stratton  near  Nor- 
wich, an  aged  Gent :  who  has  published  in  the  R.  S. 
respecting  the  growth  of  trees.  Do  you  know  any 
thing  about  this  person  ?  He  is  an  agreeable  corre- 
spondent. He  is  such  an  admirer  of  oaks,  that 
he  has  been  twice  to  see  the  great  oak  in  the 
Holt. 

D"*.  Chander,  and  family,  who  came  at  first  only 
with  an  intent  to  stay  with  us  a  few  months ;  have 
now  taken  the  vicarage  house  for  some  time.  The 
Dr.  is  much  busied  in  writing  the  life  of  his  founder, 
William  Wainflete :  he  lives  a  very  studious  and  do- 
mestic life,  keeps  no  horse,  and  visits  few  people. 
We  have  just  received  the  agreeable  news  that  Mrs. 
Clement  was  safely  delivered,  last  Wednesday,  of  a 
boy,  her  8th  child,  which  are  all  living.  Mr.  Chur- 
ton,  who  is  keeping  his  Xmas  with  us  as  usual,  de- 
sires his  best  respects,  and  many  thanks  for  the 
hospitable  reception  and  intelHgent  information 
which  he  met  with  last  summer  at  Lyndon.  He  is  a 
good  antiquary,  and  much  employed  in  writing  the 
life  of  Doctor  Will.  Smith,  the  founder  of  Brazenose 
Coll.  of  which  he  is  now  the  senior  fellow. 

¥>■  leg,  we  hope,  is  recovered  from  its  accident. 
213 


Mrs.  J.  White  joins  in  affectionate  compliments,  and 
the  good  wishes  of  the  season.     I  conclude 

Y""  most  humble  servant, 

G.  White. 


Selhome  church  seen  from  the  fields. 


2T4 


A    COMPARATIVE    VIEW 

OF   THE 

NATURALIST'S    CALENDAR, 

AS    KEPT 

AT   SELBORNE,   IN    HAMPSHIRE, 

BY   THE   LATE    REV.    GILBERT   WHITE,    M.  A., 

AND 

AT   CATSFIELD,   NEAR    BATTLE,    IN    SUSSEX, 
BY   WILLIAM    MARKWICK,    ESQ.,    F.  L.  S., 

FROM   THE   YEAR    1 768    TO    THE   YEAR    1 793. 


N.  B. — The  dates  in  the  following-  Calendars, 
when  more  than  one,  express  the  earliest  and  the 
latest  times  in  which  the  circumstance  noted  was 
observed. 


A   COMPARATIVE    VIEW   OF 


WHITE'S    AND    MARKVVICK'S    CALENDAR. 


Of  the  abbreviations  used,  y?.  iigni^es  Jlozve ring ;  I.  leafing ; 
and  ap.  the  first  appearance. 


Redbreast  {Sylvia  riibecula)  sings 

Larks  {Alauda  arveiisis)  congregate 
Nuthatch  {Sitta  Europcea)  heard 
Winter  aconite  {Helleborus  hiemalis)  fl. 
Shelless  snail  or  slug  {Limax)  ap. 
Gray  wagtail  {Motacilla  boaritla)  ap.  I 

White  wagtail  {Motaczlla  alba)  ap.  ' 

Missel  thrush  {Turdus  viscivorus)  sings 
Bearsfoot  {Helleborus  fcetidus)  fl. 
Polyanthus  {Primula  Polyantha)  fl. 
Double  daisy  {Bellis  perennis  plena)  fl. 
Mezereon  {Daphne  mezereuvi)  fl. 
Pansie  {Viola  tricolor)  fl. 
Red  dead-nettle  {Lajniuni  purpjireum)  fl. 
Groundsel  {Senecio  vulgaris)  fl. 
Hazel  {Corylus  avelana)  fl. 
Hepatica  {Anejnone  kepatica)  fl. 
Hedge  sparrow  {Sylvia  nwdularis)  sings 
Common    flies   {Musca  domesticd)   seen   in 

numbers 
Greater  titmouse  {Parus  major)  sings 
Thrush  {Turdiis  7misic7is)  sings 
Insects  swarm  under  sunny  hedges 
Piimrose  {Primzila  vulgaris)  fl. 
Bees  {Apis  mellifica)  ap. 

Gnats  play  about 

Chaffinches,    male   and    female   {Fringilla 

Calebs),  seen  in  equal  numbers  j 

Furze  or  gorse  {Ulex  Europceus)  fl.  | 

217 


WHITE. 

MARKWICK. 

Jan.  1-12 

Jan.  3-31,  and  again 
Oct.  6 

Jan.  1-18 

Oct.  16.     Feb.  9 

Jan.  1-14 

Mar.  3.     Apr.  10 

Jan.  I. 

Feb. 

18 

Feb.  28.     Apr.  17 

Jan.  2 

Jan.  16.     May  31 

Jan. 2-1 I 

( 

Jan.  24.     Mar.  26 

1 

Dec.  12.     Feb.  23 

Jan.  2-14 

Feb.  19.     Apr.  14 

Jan.  2. 

Feb. 

14 

Mar.  I.     May  5 

Jan.  2. 

Apr 

12 

Jan.  I.     Apr.  g 

Jan.  2. 

Feb. 

I 

Mar.  17.     Apr.  29 

Jan.  3. 

Feb. 

16 

Jan.  2.     Apr.  4 

Jan.  3 

Jan.  I.     May  10 

Jan.  3-21 

Jan.  I.     Apr.  5 

Jan.  3-15 

Jan.  I.     Apr.  9 

Jan.  3. 

Feb. 

28 

Jan.  21.     Mar.  n 

Jan.  4. 

Feb. 

18 

Jan.  17.     Apr.  9 

Jan.  5-12 

Jan.  16.     Mar,  13 

Jan.  5. 

Feb. 

3 

May  IS 

Jan.  6. 

Feb. 

6 

Feb.  17.     Mar.  17 

Jan.  6-22 

Jan.  15.     Apr.  4 

Jan.  6 

Jan.  6. 

Apr. 

7 

Jan.  3.     Mar.  22 

Jan.  6. 

Mar. 

19 

Jan.  31.  Apr.  11  ; 
last  seen  Dec.  30 

Jan.  6. 

Feb. 

3 

Jan.  6-1 I 

Dec.  2.     Feb.  3 

Jan.  8. 

Feb. 

I 

Jan.  I.     Mar.  27 

Wallflower  {Cheiranthus  c/ietri ;  seu  fru- 

ticiilosiis  o£  Smith)  fl. 
Stock  ^Cheiranthus  incanus)  fl. 
Ember iza  alba  (bunting)  in  great  flocks 
Linnets  {Fringiiia  linota)  congregate 
Lambs  begin  to  fall 
Rooks  ^Corviis  frugilegiis)  resort  to  their 

nest  trees 
Black  hellebore  {Helleborus  niger)  fl. 
Snowdrop  {Galanthus  nivalis)  fl. 
White  dead  nettle  {Lamiutn  albu7n)  fl. 
Trumpet  honeysuckle  fl. 
Common  creeping  crow-foot  {Ratttmcuhts 

repens)  fl. 
House  sparrow  {Fringilla  dotnestica)  chirps 
Dandelion  {Leontodon  taraxacu7)i)  fl. 
Bat  {I'espertilio)  ap. 

Spiders  shoot  their  webs 
Butterfly  ap. 

Brambling  {Fritigilla  7nonti/ringilla)  ap. 
Blackbird  {Turdus  tnerula)  whistles 
Wren  {Sylvia  troglodytes)  sings 
Earthworms  lie  out 
Crocus  {Crocus  vermis')  fl. 
Skylark  {Alauda  arvensis)  sings 

Ivy  casts  its  leaves 

Hellebores  hiemalis  fl. 

Common  dor  or  clock  {Scarabceus  sterco- 

rarius) 
Peziza  acetabulum^  ap. 
Helleborus  viridis  fl. 
Hazel  {Corylus  avellana)  fl. 
Woodlark  {Alauda  arborea)  sings 
Chaffinch  (Fringilla  ccelebs)  sings 
Jackdaws  begin  to  come  to  churches 
Yellow  wagtail  {Motacilla  Jlava)  ap. 

Honeysuckle  {Lonicera periclymenum)  1. 
Field  or  procumbent  speedwell  {Veronica 

agrestis)  fl. 
Nettle  butterfly  {Papilio  Urtic^)  ap. 

White  wagtail  {Motacilia  alba)  chirps 
Shell  snail  {Helix  nemoralis)  ap. 
Earthworms  engender 
Barren  strawberry  {Fragaria  sterilis)  fl. 
Blue  titmouse  {Partis  coeruleus)  chirps 

2li 


WHITE. 

1               MARKWICIv. 

Jan.  8. 

Apr 

.  I 

Feb.  21.     May  9 

1 

Jan.,  8-1 

2 

Feb.  I.     June  3 

Jan.  9 

Jan.  9 

Jan.  II 

Jan.  9-1 

I 

Jan.  6.     Feb.  21 

Jan.  lo. 

Feb 

.  II 

Jan.  23 

Jan.  ID 

Apr.  27 

Jan.  ID. 

Feb 

5 

Jan.  18.     Mar.  i 

Jan. 13 

Mar.  23.     May  10 

Jan.  13 

Jan.  13 

Apr.  ID.     May  12 

Jan. 14 

Feb.  17.     May  g 

Jan.  16. 

Mar 

II 

1  Feb.  I.     Apr.  17 

Jan.  16. 

Mar 

24 

Feb.  6.  June  i,  last 
seen  Nov.  20 

Jan. 16 

Jan. 16 

Feb.  21.  May  8,  last 
seen  Dec.  22 

Jan.  16 

Jan.  10-31 

Jan.  17 

Feb.  15.     May  13 

Jan. 17 

Feb.  7.     June  12 

Jan.  18. 

Feb. 

8 

Jan.  13. 

Mar. 

18 

Jan.  20.     Mar.  19 

Jan.  21 

Jan.  12.  Feb.  27, 
sings  till  Nov.  13 

Jan.  22 

Jan.  22-24 

Feb.  28.     Apr.  17 

Jan.  23 

Feb.  12.  Apr.  19, 
last  seen  Nov.  24 

Jan.  23 

Jan.  23. 

Mar. 

5 

Jan.  23. 

Feb. 

I 

Jan.  27.     Mar.  11 

Jan.  24. 

Feb. 

21 

Jan.  28.     June  5 

Jan.  24. 

Feb. 

15 

Jan.  21.     Feb.  26 

Jan.  25. 

Mar. 

4 

Jan.  25. 

Apr. 

14 

Apr.  13.  July  3,  last 
seen  Sept.  8 

Jan.  25 

Jan.  I.     Apr.  9 

Jan.  27. 

Mar. 

15 

Feb.  12.     Mar.  29 

Jan.  27. 

Apr. 

2 

Mar.  5.  Apr.  24,  last 
seen  June  6 

Jan.  28 

Mar.  16 

Jan.  28. 

Feb. 

24 

Apr.  2.     June  11 

Jan.  30 

Feb.  I. 

Mar. 

26 

Jan.  13.     Mar.  26 

Feb.  I 

Apr.  27 

Brown  wood  owls  hoot 

Hen  {Phasianus  galliis)  sits 

Marsh  titmouse  begins  his  two  harsh  sharp 

notes 
Gossamer  floats 
Muse  a  tenax  ap. 
Larustine  {l^ibiirniim  timis)  fl. 
Butcher's  broom  {Rtisczis  aculeattis)  fl. 
Fox  {Canis'vulpes)  smells  rank 

Turkey-cocks  strut  and  gobble 
Yellowhammer  {Emberiza  citrineUd)  sings 
Brimstone  butterfly  (Papllio  Rhanini)  ap. 

Green  woodpecker  {Picus  viridis)  makes  a 

loud  cry 
Raven  (^Corvits  Corax)  builds 

Yew  tree  {Taxzis  baccatd)  fl. 

Colesfoot  {Tussilagofarfard)  fl. 

Rooks  {Corvus  frugilegus)  build 

Partridges  {Perdix  chtered)  pair 

Peas  {Pisum  sativuvi)  sown 

House    pigeon    {Coliiviba   doniesticd)    has 

young  ones 
P'ield  crickets  open  their  holes 
Common  flea  {Pulex  irritans)  ap. 
Pilewort  {Ficaria  vernd)  fl. 
Goldfinch  {Fringilla  carduelis)  sings 
Viper  {Coluber  berus)  ap. 

Woodlouse  (Oniscus  asellus)  ap. 

Missel  thrushes  pair 

Daffodil  {Narcissus pseudonarczssus)  fl. 

Willow  {Salix  albd)  fl. 

Frogs  {Rana  ternporarid)  croak 

Sweet  violet  {Viola  odorata)  fl. 

Phalcena  Tinea  vestianella  ap. 

Stone  curlew  {Otis  cedicneimis)  clamours 

Filbert  {Corylus  sativus)  fl. 

Ring-dove  coos 

Apricot  tree  {Prunus  armeniaca)  fl. 

Toad  {Rana  bic/o)  ap. 

Frogs  {Rana  temporarid)  spawn 

Ivy-leaved  speedwell  {Veronica  hederifo- 

lid)  fl. 
Peach  {A  inygdalus  Persica)  fl. 
Frog  {Rana  temporaria)  ap. 
Shepherd's 'puvs&{Tklaspi bursapastoris)  fl. 
32  219 


WHITE. 

MARKWICK. 

Feb.  2 

Feb.  3 

Mar.  8  hatches 

Feb.  3 

Feb.  4. 

Apr.  I 

Feb.  4. 

Apr.  8 

Feb.  5 

Jan.  I.     Apr.  5 

Feb.  5 

Jan.  I.     May  10 

Feb.  7 

May  19,  young 
brought  forth. 

Feb.  ID 

Feb.  12 

Feb.  18.     Apr.  28 

Feb.  13. 

Apr.  2 

Feb.     13.       Mar. 
last  seen  Dec.  24 

Feb. 13. 

Mar.  23 

Jan.  I.     Apr.  17 

Feb.  14- 

17 

Apr.  I,  has  youn 
ones  June  i 

Feb.  14. 

Mar.  27 

Feb.  2.     Apr.  11 

Feb.  15. 

Mar.  23 

Feb.  18.     Apr.  13 

Feb.  16. 

Mar.  6 

Feb.  28.     Mar.  5 

Feb.  17 

Feb.  16.     Mar.  20 

Feb.  17. 

Mar.  8 

Feb.  8.     Mar.  31 

Feb.  18 

Feb.  8 

Feb.  20. 

Mar.  30 

Feb.  21- 

26 

Feb.  21. 

Apr.  13 

Jan.  25.     Mar.  26 

Feb.  21. 

Apr.  5 

Feb.  28.     May  5 

Feb.  22. 

Mar.  26 

Feb.  23.  May  6,  las 
seen  Oct.  28 

Feb.  23. 

Apr.  I 

Apr.  27.     June  17 

Feb.  24 

Feb.  24. 

Apr.  7 

Feb.  26.     Apr.  18 

Feb.  24. 

Apr.  2 

Feb.  27.     Apr.  11 

Feb.  25 

Mar.  g.     Apr.  20 

Feb.  26. 

Mar.  31 

Feb.  7.     Apr.  5 

Feb.  26 

Feb.  27. 

Apr.  24 

June  17 

Feb.  27 

Jan.  25.     Mar.  26 

Feb.  27. 

Apr,  5 

Mar.  2.     Aug.  10 

Feb. 

Feb.  28.     Apr.  5 

Feb.  28. 

Mar.  24 

Mar.  15.     July  i 

Feb.  28. 

Mar.  22 

Feb.  9.    Apr.  10,  tad 
poles  Mar.  19 

Mar.  I. 

Apr.  2 

Feb.  16.     Apr.  lo 

Mar.  2. 

Apr.  17 

Mar.  4.     Apr.  29 

Mar.  2. 

Apr.  6 

Mar.  9 

Mar.  3 

Jan.  2.     Apr.  16 

Pheasant  {Phasianus  Colc/iiaes)  crows  [ 

Land  tortoise  comes  forth  i 

Lungwort  (Pulmonoria  officinalis)  fl. 
Podura  Jimetaria  ap. 
Aranea  scenica  saliens  ap. 
Scolopendra  forficata  ap. 
Wryneck  {Jynx  torquilla)  ap. 

Goose  {Anas  anser-)  sits  on  its  eggs 
Duck  {A  nas  boschas)  lays 
Dog's  violet  {J'iola  catiina)  fl. 
Peacock  butterfly  {Papilio  lo)  ap. 

Trouts  begin  to  rise 
Field  beans  {Vicia  falui)  planted 
Bloodworms  appear  in  the  water 
Crow  {Corvus  Corone)  builds 

Oats  {A  vena  sativd)  sown 

Golden    crowned    wren    {Sylvia    regulus) 

sings 
Asp  {^Populus  treinula)  fl. 
Common  elder  {Saittbiicus  nigra)  1. 
Laurel  {Pritnus  laurocerasus)  fl. 
Chrysomela  Getting,  ap. 
Black  ants  {^Formica  nig)-a)  ap. 
EphemercB  bisetce  ap. 
Gooseberry  {Ribes  grossitlar-ia)  1. 
Common  stitchwort  {Siellaria  holosted)  fl. 
Wood  anemone  (^A  nemone  nejnorosa)  fl. 
Blackbird  {Turdus  Merula)  lays 

Raven  {Corvus  Corax)  sits 
Wheatear  {Sylvia  G^nantke)  ap. 

Mush-wood  crowfoot  {Ado.ra   vtoschattel- 

lina)  fl. 
Willow  wren  *  {Syh'ia  trochilus)  ap. 


WHITE. 

MARKWICK. 

Mar.  3-29 

Mar.  I.     May  22 

Mar.  4. 

May 

8 

Mar.  4. 

Apr. 

16 

Mar.  2.     May  19 

Mar.  4 

Mar.  4 

Mar.  5-16 

Mar.  5. 

Apr. 

25 

Mar.  26.  Apr.  23, 
last  seen  Sept.  14 

Mar.  5 

Mar.  21 

Mar.  5 

Mar.  28 

Mar.  6. 

Apr. 

18 

Feb.  28.     Apr.  22 

Mar.  6 

Feb.  13.  Apr.  20, 
last  seen  Dec.  25 

Mar.  7-14 

Mar.  8 

Apr.  29  emerge 

Mar.  8 

Mar.  10 

July  I  has  young 
ones 

Mar.  lo-i 

3 

Mar.  16.     Apr.  13 

Mar.  12. 

Apr. 

30 

Apr.  15.  May  22,  seen 
Dec.  23.     Jan.  26 

Mar.  12 

Feb.  26.     Mar.  28 

Mar.  13-20 

Jan.  24.     Apr.  22 

Mar.  15. 

May 

21 

Apr.  2.     May  27 

Mar.  15 

Mar.  15. 

Apr. 

22 

Mar.  2.     May  18 

Mar.  16 

Mar.  17. 

Apr. 

ir 

Feb.  26.     Apr.  9 

Mar.  17. 

May 

19 

INIar.  8.     May  7 

Mar.  17. 

Apr. 

22 

Feb.  27.     Apr.  10 

Mar.  17 

Apr.  14,  young  ones 
May  19 

Mar.  17 

Apr.  I  builds 

Mar.  18-30 

Mar.    13,      May    23, 

last  seen  Oct.  26 

Mar.  18. 

Apr. 

13 

Feb.  23.     Apr.  28 

Mar.  19.  Apr.  13  Mar.  30.  May  16,  sits 
I  May  27,  last  seen 
I      Oct.  23 


*  Willow  Wren. — Mr.  White  has  made  strange  confusion  in  the  entries  respecting 
the  wrens  in  his  calendar.  Three  sorts  were  known  to  him,  as  he  distinctly  says  m  a 
former  passage:  the  Sylvia  trochilus^  a  yellow  wren  ;  the  Sylvia  sibilafrij:,  or  wood 
wren  ;  the  Sylvia  hippolais,  or  chiff-chaff ;  but  he  enters  the  separate  appearance  of 
four  such  wrens  in  the  Calendar,  although  there  were  not  four  species  known  in  this 
country,  nor  did  he  ever  fancy  that  there  were  four.  By  reference  to  what  he  has  said 
in  other  places,  it  should  seem  that  the  chiff-chaff  appears  the  first.  Therefore,  in  the 
entry,  March  igth,  we  must  read,  instead  of  willow  wren,  Sylvia  trochilus,  chiff-chaff, 

220 


Fumaria  bulbosa  fl. 

Elm  {Ulmus  catitpestris)  fl. 

Turkey  {Meleagris  gallopavo)  lays 


House  pigeons  {Columba  domesticd)  sit 

Marsh  marigold  {Caltha  pahistris)  fl. 
Buzz-fly  i^Bombylius  medius)  ap. 
Sand  martin  {Hirundo  riparia)  ap. 

Snake  {Coluber  jiatrix)  ap. 

Horse  ant  {Forviica  herculeand)  ap. 

Greenfinch  {Loxia  chloris)  sings 
Ivy  {Hedera  helix)  berries  ripe 
Periwinkle  {Vz'nca  minor)  fl. 
Spurge  laurel  {Daphne  laureold)  fl. 
Swallow  {Hirundo  rusticci)  ap. 

Blackcap  {Sylvia  atricapilla)  heard 


Young  ducks  hatched 

Golden  saxifrage  {Chrysosplenium  opposi- 

11/01111711)  fl. 

Martin  {Hiruitdo  iirbica)  ap. 

Double  hyacinth  {Hyacinthiis  orientalis)  fl. 
Young  geese  {A  nas  anser) 
Wood  sorrel  {Oxalis  acetoselld)  fl. 
Ring  ouzel  {Turdus  torquattis)  seen 
Barley  {Hordeum  sativuni)  sown 
Nightingale  {Sylvia  luscinia)  sings 

Ash  {Fraximis  excelsior)  fl. 

Spiders'  webs  on  the  surface  of  the  ground 

Checquered    daffodil    {Fritillaria    inelea- 

gris)  fl. 
Julus  terrestris  ap. 
Cowslip  {Pritnula  veris)  fl. 
Ground  ivy  {Glecoma  hederacea)  fl. 
Snipe  pipes 
Box  tree  {Buxtis  seinpervirens)  fl. 


WHITE.                  1 

MARKWICK. 

Mar.  19 

Mar.  ig. 

Apr.  4 

Feb.  17.     Apr.  25 

Mar.  ig. 

Apr.  7 

Mar.  18-25,  sits  Apr. 
4,  young  ones  Apr. 
30 

Mar.  20 

Mar.      20,     young 
hatched 

Mar.  20. 

Apr,  14 

Mar.  22.     May  8 

Mar.  21. 

Apr.  28 

Mar.  15.     Apr.  30 

Mar.  21. 

Apr.  12 

Apr.  8.  May  16, 
last  seen  Sept.  8 

Mar.  22-30 

Mar.    3.        Apr.    29, 

last  seen  Oct.  2 

Mar.  22. 

Apr.  18 

Feb.  4.  Mar.  26,  last 
seen  Nov.  i 

Mar.  22. 

Apr.  22 

Mar.  6.     Apr.  26 

Mar.  23. 

Apr.  14 

Feb.  16.     May  19 

Mar.  25 

Feb.  6.     May  7 

Mar.  25. 

Apr.  I 

Apr.  12-22 

Mar.  26. 

Apr.  20 

Apr.  7-27,  last  seen 
Nov.  16 

Mar.  26. 

May  4 

Apr.  14.  May  18, 
seen  Apr.  14.  May 
20,  last  seen  Sept. 

Mar.  27 

19 
Apr.  6.     May  16 

Mar.  27. 

Apr.  9 

Feb.  7.     Mar.  27 

Mar.  28. 

May  I 

Apr.  14.  May  8,  last 
seen  Dec.  8 

Mar.  29. 

Apr.  22 

Mar.  13.     Apr.  24 

Mar.  29 

Mar.  29.     Apr.  19 

Mar.  30. 

Apr.  22 

Feb.  2b.     Apr.  26 

Mar.  30. 

Apr.  17 

Oct.  II 

Mar.  31. 

Apr.  30 

Apr.  12.     May  20 

Apr.  I. 

May  I 

Apr.  5.  July  4,  last 
seen  Aug.  29 

Apr.  I. 

May  4 

Apr.  I 

Mar.  16.     May  8 

Apr.  2-24 

Apr.  15.     May  i 

Apr.  2 

Apr.  3-24 

Mar.  3.     May  17 

Apr.  3-15 

Mar.  2.     Apr.  16 

Apr.  3 

Apr.  3 

Mar.  27.     May  8 

Sylvia  hippolais.     In  page  208,  Mr.  White  states  this  bird  to  be  the  chiff-chaff,  and  to 
be  usually  heard  on  the  25th  of  March. — W.  H. 

221 


Elm  {Uhmts  cam/>estrzs)  1. 
Gooseberry  i^Ribes grossula7'id)  fl. 
Currant  {Ribes  hortensis)  fl. 
Pear  tree  (Pyrus  co7iimiinis)  fl. 
Lacerta  znilgaris  (,newt  or  eft)  ap. 

Dogs'  mercury  {Mercurialis perennis)  fl. 
Wych  elm  {Ubnus  glabra  seu  montana  of 

Smith)  fl. 
Ladysmock  {Carda}nine  p7-atensis)  fl. 
Cuckoo  {Ciicuius  canorus)  heard 

Blackthorn  {Primus  spinosa)  fl. 
Deathwatch  {Terines pulsatorius)  beats 
Gudgeon  spawns 
Redstart  {Sylvia  Phcenicurus)  ap. 

Crown  imperial  {Fritallaria  iinperialis)  fl. 
Titlark  {Alauda pratensis)  sings 

Beech  {Fagus  sylvatica)  1. 

Shellsnail  {Helix  nemoralis)  comes  out  in 

troops 
Middle  yellow  wren  *  ap. 
Swift  {Hiriindo  apus)  ap. 
Stinging  fly  {Conops  calcitrans)  ap. 
Whitlow  grass  {Draba  verna)  fl. 
Larch  tree  {Pinus-larix  rubral  I. 
Whitethroat  {Sylvia  cinered)  ap. 


Red  ant  {Forjnica  rubra)  ap.  '• 

Mole  cricket  {Gryllus  gryllotalpa)  churs 
Second  willow  or  laughing  wren  t  ap. 
Red  rattle  {Pedicularis  sylvatica)  fl. 
Common  flesh-fly  {Musca  carnaria)  ap. 
Ladycow  {Coccinella  bipunctatd)  ap. 
Grasshopper  lark  {Alauda  locustce  race)  ap. 
Willow  wren,t  its  shivering  note  heard 
Middle  willow  wren  §  {Regulus  non  crista- 

tus  medius)  ap. 
Wild  cherry  {Prunus  cerasus)  fl. 
Garden  cherry  {Prunus  cerasus)  fl. 


WHITE. 

MARKVVICK. 

Apr.  3 

Apr.  2.     May  19 

Apr.  3-14 

Mar.  21.     May  I 

Apr.  3-5 

Mar.  24.     Apr.  28 

Apr.  3. 

May  21 

Mar.  30.     Apr.  30 

Apr.  4 

Feb.  17.  Apr.  15, 
last  seen  Oct.  9 

Apr.  5-19 

Jan.  20.     Apr.  16 

Apr.  5 

Apr.  19.     May  10,  x 

Apr.  6-20 

Feb.  21.     Apr.  26 

Apr.  7-26 

Apr.  15.  May  3,  last 
heard  June  28 

Apr.  7. 

May  ID 

Mar.  16.     May  8 

Apr.  7 

i\Iar.  28.     May  28 

Apr.  7 

Apr.  8-28 

Apr.  5,  sings  Apr.  25, 
last  seen  Sept.  30 

Apr.  8-24 

Apr.  I.     May  13 

Apr.  9-19 

Apr.  14-29,  sits  June 
16-27 

Apr.  ID. 

May  8 

Apr.  24.     May  25 

Apr.  II. 

May  9 

May  17.     June  11  ap. 

Apr.  II 

Apr.  13. 

May  7 

Apr.  28.     May  19 

Apr.  14. 

May  17 

Apr.  14 

Jan  15.     Mar.  24 

Apr.  14 

Apr.  I,     May  9 

Apr.  14. 

May  14 

Apr.  14.  May  5,  sings 
May  3-10,  last  seen 
Sept.  23 

Apr.  14 

Apr.  0.     June  26 

Apr.  14 

Apr.  14-1C 

-23 

Apr.  10.     June  4 

Apr.  15-ic 

Apr.  15 

Apr.  16 

Apr.  16-3C 

Apr.  17. 

May  7 

Apr.  28.     May  i 

Apr.  17-2- 

1 

Apr.  18. 

May  12 

Mar.  30.'    May  10 

Apr.  18. 

May  II 

Mar.  25.     May  6 

*  Yellow  wren  {Sylvia  trochilus).—W.  H.     fiay  bird  {Trochilus  asilus,  Renxie). 
-J.R. 
t  Wood  wren  {Sylvia  sibilalrix).—W.  H.     {Trochilus  sibillans  RennieV— J.  R. 
%  Wood  wren.     W.  H. 
§  Yellow  wren  {Sylvia  trochilus).— \\' .  H.     Hay  bird  {Trochilus  asilus  Rexnie). 

-j;r. 

222 


Plum  {Prunus  domesHcd)  fl. 

Harebell    {Hyacintkus     non-scriptus     seu 

Scilla  nutans  of  Smith)  fl. 
Turtle  {Colutnba  turtur)  coos 

Hawthorn   {Cratcegus   seu   Mespihis  oxy- 

cantha  of  Smith)  fl. 
Male  fool's  orchis  (^Orchis  mascula)  fl. 
Blue  flesh  fly  {Mtisca  vojnitorid)  ap. 
Black  snail  or  slug  {Limax  ater)  abounds 
Apple  tree  {Pyrzis-malus  sativus)  fl. 
Large  bat  ap. 
Strawberry    wild    wood    {Fragarza    vesca 

sylv.)  fl. 
Sauce  alone  {Erysiimcm  alliaria)  fl. 
Wild  or  bird  cherry  {Prumcs  aviuui)  fl. 
Apis  Hypnoru7n  ap. 
Musca  meridiana  ap. 
Wolf  fly  {Asilus)  ap. 

Cabbage  butterfly  {Papilio  Brassicce)  ap. 
Dragon  fly  {Libelhild)  ap. 

Sycamore  i^Acer pseiidoplatanus)  fl. 
Bombylius  jninor  ap. 
Glowworm  {Lavipyris  noctilucd)  shines 
Fern  owl  or  goatsucker  {Caprimulgus  Eu- 

ropcpus)  ap. 
Common  bugle  {Ajuga  reptans)  fl. 
Field  crickets  {Gryllus  catnpestris)  crink 
Chafer  or  maybug  {Scarabceus  melolonthd) 

ap. 
Honeysuckle  {Lonicera periclymenum')  fl. 
Toothwort  {Latkreea  squaviarid)  fl. 
Shell  snails  copulate 
Sedge  warbler  {Sylvia  salicaria)  sings 
Mealy  tree  {Virburmim  lantana')  fl. 
Flycatcher  {Stoparola  or  Mttscicapa  gris- 

ola)  ap. 
Apis  longicornis  ap. 
Sedge  warbler  (Sylvia  salicaria)  ap. 
Oak  {Quercus  robiir)  fl. 
Admiral  butterfly  {Papilio  Atalanta)  ap. 
Orange  tip  {Papilio  cardamines)  ap. 
Beech  {Fagus  sylvatica)  fl. 
Common  maple  {Acer  campestre)  fl. 
Barberry  tree  {Berberis  znilgaris)  fl. 
Wood  argus  butterfly  {Papilio  ^geria)  ap. 
Orange  lily  {Lilium  bulbiferum)  fl. 
Burnet  moth  (Sphinx  Filipendulce)  ap. 
Walnut  {Jziglans  regid)  1. 

223 


WHI 

TE. 

MARKWICK. 

Apr.  18. 

May  5 

Mar.  24.     May  6 

Apr.  19-25 

Mar.  27.     May  8 

Apr.  20-27 

May    14.      Aug.    10 

seen 

Apr.  20. 

June  II 

Apr.  19.     May  26 

Apr.  21 

Mar.  29.      May  13 

Apr.  21. 

May  23 

Apr.  22 

Feb.  I.     Oct.  24,  ap. 

Apr.  22. 

May  25 

Apr.  II.     May  26 

Apr.  22. 

June  II 

Apr.  23-29 

Apr.  8-9 

Apr.  23 

Mar.  31.     May  8 

Apr.  24 

Mar.  30.     May  10 

Apr.  24 

Apr.  24. 

May  28 

Apr.  25 

Apr.  28. 

May  20 

Apr.  29.     June  15 

Apr.  30. 

May  21 

Apr.    18.      May    13, 
last  seen  Nov.  10 

Apr.  30. 

June  6 

Apr.  20.     June  4 

May  I 

May  I. 

June  II 

June  19.     Sept.  28 

May  1-26 

May  16.     Sept.  14 

May  I 

Mar.  27.     May  10 

May  2-24 

May  2-26 

May  2.     July  7 

May  3-30 

Apr.  24.     June  21 

May  4-12 

May  4. 

June  17 

May  4 

June  2-30 

May  5-17 

Apr.  25.     May  22 

May  10-30 

Apr.  29.     May  21 

May  10. 

June  9 

May  11-13 

Aug.  2 

May  13-15 

Apr.  29.     June  4 

May  14 

Mar.  30.     May  19 

May  15-26 

Apr.  23.     May  28 

May  16 

Apr.  24.     May  27 

May  17-26 
May  17 

Apr.  28.     June  4 

May  18. 

June  II 

June  14.     July  22 

May  18. 

June  13 

May  24.     June  26 

May  18 

Apr.  ID.     June  i 

Laburnum  {Cytisus  laburnum)  fl. 
Forest  fly  {Hippobosca  equina)  ap. 
Saintfoin  {Hedysarum  onobrycJiis)  fl. 
Peony  {Fceonia  officinalis)  fl. 
Horse     chestnut      {AlscuIus     hippocasta- 

nU77l)  fl. 

Lilac  {Syringa  vulgaris)  fl. 

Columbine  {Aguilegia  vulgaris)  fl. 

Medlar  {Mespilus  gennanica^  fl. 

Tormentil  {Tormentilla  erect  a  seu  offici- 
nalis of  Smith)  fl. 

Lily  of  the  valley  (Convallaria  jnaja- 
lis)  fl. 

Bees  {Apis  mellificd)  swarm 

Woodroof  {Asperula  odorota)  fl. 

Wasp,  female  {I'espa  vulgaris)  ap. 

Mountain   Ash    {Sorbus  seu   Pyrus  aucu- 

paria  of  Smith)  fl. 
Bird's-nest  orchis  (Ophrys  nidus  avis)  fl. 
White-beam    tree    {Cratcegus    seu     Pyrus 

aria  of  Smith)  fl. 
Milkwort  {Polygala  vulgaris)  fl. 
Dwarf  cistus  {Cistus  helianthemujn)  fl, 
Gelder  rose  {Virburnum  opulus)  fl. 
Common  elder  {Sambuc^is  nigra)  fl. 
Cantharis  noctiluca  ap. 
Apis  longicornis  bores  holes  in  walks 
Mulberry  tree  {Morus  nigra)  1. 
Wild  service  tree  {Cratcegus  seu  Pyrus  tor- 

minalis  of  Smith)  fl. 
"Sanicle  {SaJiicula  Europced)  fl. 
Avens  (Geu7n  7irbanu77t)  fl. 
Female  fool's  orchis  {Orchis  77torio)  fl. 
Ragged  Robin  {Lych7iis  Jlos  cuculi)  fl. 
Burnet  {Poteriu77i  sa7zguisorba)  fl. 
Foxglove  {Digitalis purpurea)  fl. 
Corn  flag  {Gladiolus  co77t77tunis)  fl. 
Serapias  longifol.  fl. 
Raspberry  {Rubus  idceus)  fl. 
Herb  Robert  (Geraniu7n  Robertianu7n)  fl. 
Figwort  {Scrophularia  nodosa)  fl. 
Gromwell  {Lithosper7nu7n  officinale)  fl. 
Wood  spurge  {Eiiphorbia  a7nygdaloides)  fl. 
Ramsons  {Alliu7n  ursinu77t)  fl. 
Mouse-ear    scorpion   grass   {Myosotis  scor- 

pioides)  fl. 
Grasshopper  {Gryllus  grossus)  ap. 


WHITE. 

MARKWICK. 

May  i8.     June  5 

May  I. 

June  23 

May  18.      June  9 

May  19.      June  8 

May  21. 

July  28 

May  20.      June  15 

Apr.  18. 

May  26 

May  21.      June  9 

Apr.  19. 

June  7 

May  21 

Apr.  15. 

May  30 

May  21-27 

May  6. 

June  13 

May  21.      June  20 

Apr.  8. 

June  19 

May  21 

Apr.  17. 

June  II 

May  22 


Apr.  27.     June  13 


Rose  {Rosa  hortensis)  fl. 


May  22. 

July  22 

May  12.     June  23 

May  22-25 

Apr.  14.     June  4 

May  23 

Apr.  2.     June  4,  last 
seen  Nov.  2 

May  23. 

June  8 

Apr.  20.     June  8 

May  24. 

June  II 

May  18.     Jun-  12 

May  24. 

June  4 

May  3 

May  24. 

June  7 

Apr.  13.     June  2 

May  25 

May  4.     Aug.  8 

May  26 

May  10.     June  8 

May  26. 

June  25 

May  6.     June  17 

May  26 

May  27. 

June  9 

May  27. 

June  13 

May  20.     June  11 

May  27 

May  13.     June  19 

May  27. 

June  13 

Apr.  23.     June  4 

May  28 

May  9.     June  11 

May  28 

Apr.  17.     May  20 

May  29. 

June  I 

May  12.     June  8 

May  29 

Apr.  30.     Aug.  7 

May  30. 

June  22 

May  23.     June  15 

May  30. 

June  20 

June  9.     July  8 

May  30. 

June  13 

May  30. 

June  21 

May  10.     June  16 

May  30 

Mar.  7.     May  16 

May  31 

May  12.     June  20 

May  31 

May  10-24 

June  I 

Mar.  23.     May  13 

June  I 

Apr.  21.     June  4 

June  I 

Apr.  11.     June  i 

June  1-14 

Mar.  25.     July  6,  last 

seen  Nov.  3 

June  1-2 

c 

June  7.     July  1 

224 


WHITE. 

Mouse-ear    hawkweed    {Hieracimn    pilo-  \  June  i.        July  i6 

sella)  fl. 
Buckbean  {Mettyanthes  trifoliatd)  fl. 
Rose  chafer  {Scarabceus  auratus)  ap.      - 
Sheep  {Ovis  aries)  shorn 
Water  flag  {Iris  pseudo-acorus)  fl, 
Cuhivated  rye  {Secale  cereale)  fl. 
Hounds  tongue  {Cynoglosstim  officinale)  fl 

Helleborine  {Serapias  latifolia)  fl.  June  2.       Aug.  6 

Green  gold  fly  {Miisca  Ccesar)  ap. 
Argus  butterfly  {Papilio  moera)  ap. 
Spearwort  {Ra^tunculus  flammula)  fl. 
BIrdsfoot  trefoil  {Lotus  corniculatus)  fl. 
Fraxinella    or  white    dittany   {Dictamnus 

albus)  fl. 
Phrygafiea  nigra  ap. 
Angler's  may -fly  {Ephemera  vulg.)  ap. 
Ladies'  finger  (^  nthyllis  vulnerarid)  fl. 
Bee  orchis  {Ophrys  apifera)  fl. 
Pink  {Dianthus  deltoides)  fl. 
Mock  ora.x\g,&  {Philadelphus  coronarius)  fl. 
Libellula  Virgo  ap. 
Vine  {Vitis  viniflera)  fl. 
Portugal  laurel  {Prunus  Liisitanicus')  fl. 
Purple  spotted  martagon  {Lilium  inarta- 

gon)  fl. 
Meadow  cranes-bill  {Geranium pratense)  fl. 
Black  bryony  {Tamus  communis)  fl. 
Field  pea  {Pisuin  sativum  arvense)  fl. 
Bladder    campion    {Cucubalus    behen    seu 

Silene  inflata  of  Smith)  fl. 
Bryony  {Bryonia  alba)  fl. 
Hedge  nettle  {St achy s  sylvatica)  fl. 
Bittersweet  {Solanum  dulcamara)  fl. 
Walnut  {Juglans  regia)  fl. 

Phallus  impudicus  ap.  June  12.      July  23 

Rosebay  willow-herb  {Epilobiui7i  angusti^ 

foliuvi)  fl. 
"Wheat  {TriticuTn  hybernum)  ^.  June  13.      July  22 

Comfrey  {Symphytum  officinale)  fl. 
Yellow  pimpernel  {Lysimachia  nemoruin)  fl. 
Tremella  nostac  ap.  June  15.     Aug.  24 

Buckthorn  {Rhamnus  catharticus)  1. 
Cuckow-spit  insect  {Cicada  spumaria)  ap 
Dog-rose  (/i(?j-a  canina)  fl. 

Puff-ball  {Lycoperdon  bovista)  ap.  i  June  17.     Sept.  3 

Mullein  {Verbascum  thapsus)  fl. 
Viper's    bugloss    {Echium    a7iglicum    seu 

vulgare  of  Smith)  fl.  ' 

Meadow  hay  cut  I  June  19.      July  20 

225 


June  I 

June  2-8 

June  2-23 

June  2 

June  2 

June  2 

June  2. 

June  2 

June  2 

Junes 

June  3 

June  3-1 1 

June  3 

June  3-14 

June  4 

June  4. 

June  5-19 

Junes 

June  5-20 

June  7. 

June  8. 

June  8-25 

June  8. 

June  8 

June  9 

June  9 

June  9 

June  10 

June  II 

June  12 

June  12. 

June  12 

June  13. 

June  13 

June  13-3C 

June  15. 

June  16 

June  t6 

June  17,  lE 

June  17. 

June  18 

June  19 

July 


July  30 
July  I 


Aug. 


MARKWICK. 

Apr.  19. 

June  12 

Apr.  20. 

June  8 

Apr.  18. 

Aug.  4 

May  23. 

June  17 

May  8. 

June  9 

May  27 

May  II. 

June  7 

July  22. 

Sept.  6 

Apr.  25.  June  13 
Apr.  10.  June  3 
June  9.     July  24 


June  I.  Aug.  16 

May  26.  July  6 

May  16.  June  23 

June  18.  July  29 

June  3.  July  16 

June  18.  July  19 


May  15.  June  21 

May  15.  June  21 

May  4.  July  13 

May  13.  Aug.  17 

May  28.  June  24 

May  15.  June  20 

Apr.  18.  June  i 

June  4.  July  28 


June  4- 

30 

May4. 

June  23 

Apr.  ID 

June  12 

May  25 

June  2- 

21 

May  24. 

June  2T 

May  6. 

Aug.  19 

June  ID 

July  22 

May  27. 

July  3 

June  13.     July  7 


Stag  beetle  {Lucainis  cerviis)  ap. 
Borage  {Borago  officinalis)  fl. 
Spindle  tree  {Ejionymics  Eii7-opceus)  fi. 
Musk  thistle  {Carduus  nutans)  fl. 
Dogwood  {Cormis  sangiiinea)  fl. 
Field  scabious  {Scabiosa  arvensis)  fl. 
Marsh  thistle  {Carduus paliistris)  fl. 
Dropwort  {Spircea  filipendula)  fl. 
Great  wild  valerian    {]'aleria7ia   officina- 
lis) fl. 
Quail  {Perdix  Coturnix)  calls 


WHITE, 

MARI 

CWICK. 

June  ig 

June  14- 

21 

June  20 

Apr.  22. 

July  26 

June  20 

May  II. 

June  25 

June  20.      July  4 

June  4. 

July  25 

June  21 

May  28. 

June  27 

June  21 

June  16. 

Aug.  14 

June  21-27 

May  15. 

June  19 

June  22.      July  9 

May  8. 

Sept.  3 

June  22.      July  7 

May  22. 

July  21 

June  22.      July  4 


Mountain  willow  herb  {Epilobium  vionta-  j  June  22 

nuni)  fl. 

Thistle  upon  thistle  {Carduus  crispus)  fl.  June  23- 

Cow  parsnip  {Heracleu7n  sphondylium)  fl.  June  23 

Earth-nut    {Bunium    bulbocastanum    seu  June  23 

Jlexuosum  of  Smith)  fl. 

Young  frogs  migrate  June  23. 

CEstrus  curvicauda  ap.  June  24 

Vervain  {V^erbena  officinalis)  fl.  June  24 

Corn  poppy  {Papaver  Rhoeas)  fl.  June  24 

Self-heal  {Prunella  -vulgaris)  fl.  June  24 

Agrimony  {Agrimonia  eupatoria)  fl.  June  24- 

Great  horse-fly  {Tabanus  bovinus)  ap.  June  24. 

Greater  knapweed  {Centaurea  scabiosa)  fl.  June  25 

Mushroom  {Agariczis  campestris)  ap.  June  26. 

Common  mallow  {Malva  sylvestris)  fl.  June  26 

Dwarf  mallow  {Malva  rotundi/olia)  fl.  June  26 

St.  John's  wort  {Hypericum pe^-foratum)  fl.  June  26 

Broom  rape  {Orobaftche  major)  fl.  ,  June  27. 

Henbane  (Hyoscyam^is  ?iiger)  fl.  j  June  27 

Goats-beard  {Tragopogon prate nsc)  fl.  ;  June  27 

Deadly  nightshade  {Atropa  belladonna)  fl.  |  June  27 

Truffles  begin  to  be  found  June  28. 

Young  partridges  fly  June  28. 

Lime  tree  {Tilia  Europcea)  fl.  June  28. 

Spear  thistle  {Carduus  lanceolatus)  fl.  June  28. 

Meadow  sweet  {Spircea  ubnaria)  fl.  June  28 

Greenweed  {Genista  tinctoria)  fl.  June  28 

Wild  thyme  {Thymus  serpyllum)  fl.  June  28 

Stachys  germatiic.  fl.  June  29, 

Day  lily  {Hemerocallis  Jlava)  fl.  June  29 

Jasmine  {Jasmintint  officinale)  fl.  June  29 

Yio\yo2!vi{Alcea  rosea)  ^.  June  29 

Monotropa  hypopithys  fl.  June  29 

Ladies  bedstraw  {Galitnn  verum)  fl.  June  29 

Galium  palustre  ^.  June  29 

Nipplewort  {Lapsana  communis)  fl.  June  29 

Welted  thistle  {Carduus  acafztkoides)  fl.  June  29 

226 


Aug.  2 


Aug.  2 
Aug.  30 


July    23,   seen    Sept. 

1-18 
June  5-21 

May  22.  July  22 
May  27.  July  12 
May  4-31 


June  ID.     Jul}^  ] 
Apr.  30.     July  I 
June  7-23 
June  7.     July  9 


July 


June  7. 
Apr.  16. 
May  27. 
May  12. 
June  15, 
May  9. 
May  13. 
June  5-14 
May  22.     Aug 


Aug.  14 
Aug.  16 
July  13 
July  30 
July  12 

July  25 
June  19 

14 


July  29 
July  31 
July  31 
July  12 


July  20 
July  4 
July  30 
Aug.  4 
July  23 


July  8-28 
June  12.     July  30 
June  27.     July  18 
June  16.     July  24 
June  4.     July  24 
June  6.     July  19 

May  29.  June  9 
June  27.  July  21 
July  4.     Sept.  7 

June  22.     Aug.  3 

May  30.     July  24 


Sneezewort  {Achillea ptarmicd)  fl. 
Musk  mallow  {Malva  moschatd)  fl. 
Pimpernel  {Anagallis  arvensis)  fl. 
Hoary  beetle  {Scarabcsus  solstit.)  ap. 
Corn    saw-wort    {Serratula    arvensis    seu 

Ca7'duiis  a7-7iensis  of  Smith)  fl. 
Pheasant's  eye  {Adonis  annua  seu  autu7n- 

nalis  of  Smith)  fl. 
Red    eyebright    {Euphrasia    seu    Bartsia 

odontites  of  Smith)  fl. 
Thorough  wax  {Buplezirum  rotundifol.)  fl. 
Cockle  {Agrostemma  Githago)  fl. 
Ivy-leaved  wild  lettuce  {Prenanthes  mu- 

ralis)  fl. 
Feverfew     {Matricaria     seu     Pyrethrurn 

parthenimn  of  Smith)  fl. 
Wall  pepper  {Sedum  acre)  fl. 
Privet  {Ligustrum  vulgare)  fl. 
Common  toadflax (/i  iitirrhinum  linaria)^. 
Perennial  wild  flax  {Linum perenne)  fl. 
Whortle-berries  ripe  {Vacciniimi  zilig.) 
Yellow  base  rocket  {Reseda  hitea)  fl. 
Blue-bottle  {Centattrea  cyamis)  fl. 
Dwarf  carline  thistle  {Carduus  acaulis)  fl. 
Bull-rush  or  cats-tail  {Typha  lati/olia)  fl. 
Spiked  willow  herb  {Lythrum  salicaria)  fl. 
Black  mullein  {Verbascum  niger)  fl. 
Chrysanthemum  coronariiun  fl. 
Marigolds  {Calendula  officinalis)  fl. 
Little  field  madder  {Sherardia  arvensis)  fl. 
Calamint  {Melissa  seu    Thymus  calamin- 

tha  of  Smith)  fl. 
Black  horehound  {Ballota  nigra)  fl. 
Wood  betony  {Betonica  officifialis)  fl. 
Round-leaved  bell-flower  {Campamda  ro- 

tundi/olia)  fi. 
All-good  {ChenopodiuTn  bonus  Henricus)  fl. 
Wild  carrot  {Daucus  carota)  fl. 
Indian  cress  {Epopceolum  inaj'us)  fl. 
Cat-mint  {Nepeta  cataria)  fl. 
Cow-wheat  {Melampyrum  sylvaticum  seu 

prate7ise  of  Smith)  fl. 
Crosswort  {Valantia  cruciata  seu  Galiu77i 

cruciatu77i  of  Smith)  fl. 
Cranberries  ripe 
Tufted  vetch  {Vicia  cracca)  fl. 
Wood  vetch  {Vicia  sylvat.)  fl. 
Little    throat-wort    {Ca77ipa7tula  glo77iera- 

ta)  fl. 
Sheep's  scabious  {Jasio7ie  77iontana)  fl. 


WHITE. 

June  30 

June  30 

June  30 

June  30.      July  17 

July  I 

July  I 

July  2 

June  2 
July  2 
July  2 

July  2 


MARKWICK. 

June  22.  Aug.  3 
June  g.  July  14 
May  4.     June  22 

June  15.     July  15 

Apr,  II.     July  15 

June  20.     Aug.  10 

May  14.  July  25 
June  2.     July  25 

June  19.     July  24 


Julys 

June  8. 

July  12 

Julys 

June  3. 

July  13 

Julys 

June  21. 

Aug.  3 

July  4 

Apr.  21. 

July  6 

July  4-24 

Julys 

July  19 

Julys 

May  15. 

Oct.  14 

July  5-12 

June  30. 

Aug.  4 

July  6 

June  29. 

July  21 

July  6 

June  24, 

Aug.  17 

July  6 

July  6 

May  28. 

July  28 

July  6-9 

Apr.  20. 

July  16 

July  7 

Jan.  II. 

June  6 

July? 

July  21 

July  7 

June  16, 

Sept.  12 

July  8-19 

June  ID. 

July  IS 

Julys 

June  12. 

July  29 

Julys 

Apr.  21. 

June  IS 

Julys 

June  7. 

July  14 

July  8-20 

June  II. 

July  2S 

July  9 

July  9 

May  2. 

June  22 

July  9 

Apr.  10. 

May  28 

July  9-27 

July  10 

May  31. 

Julys 

July  10 

July  II 

July  28. 

Aug.  iS 

July  II 

June  10. 

July  2S 

111 


Pastinaca  syh>.  fl. 

White  lily  {Liiizim  candidinti)  fl. 

Hemlock  {Coniuni  maciilatuvi^  fl. 

Caucalis  anthriscus  fl. 

Flying  ants  ap. 

Moneywort  {Lysiviachia  tiuvijuidarid)  fl. 

Scarlet     martagon     {Liihnii     Chalcedotii- 

cutu)  fl. 
Lesser  stitchwort  {Steilaria  graviinea)  fl. 
Foors  parsley  {^^t/iusa  cynapiuvi)  fl. 
Dwarf  elder  {Savibiicus  Ebuliis)  fl. 
Swallows  and  martins  congregate 
Potato  {Soiafittvi  tuberosum)  fl. 
Angelica  sylz'.  ^. 
Digitalis  fer7-ugin.  fl. 
Rag^vort  {Se nee io  Jacob tra)  fl. 
Golden  rod  {Solidago  Z'ifgaurea)  fl. 
Star  thistle  {Centaurea  calcilrapa)  fl. 
Tree  primrose  {Oenothera  biennis)  fl. 
Peas  {Pisuni  satiz'uiti)  cut 
Galega  ojfficiri.  fl. 

Apricots  (Prumts  armeniaca)  ripe 
Clown's  allheal  {Stachys  palustris)  fl. 
Branching  AVillow-herb     {Epilobiu)n    ra- 

mos^  fl. 
Rye  harvest  begins 

Yellow  centaur\-  {Chlora  per/oliatd)  fl. 
Yellow  vetchling  (Lathyriis  aphaca)  fl. 
Enchanter's    nightshade     {Circepa    luteti- 

atia)  fl. 
Water  hemp  agrimony  {Eupatoriuvi  can- 

fzabimnn)  fl. 
Giant    throat-wort    iCampanida    tracheli- 

ittn)  fl. 
Eyebright  {Euphrasia  officinalis^  fl. 
Hops  {Humulus  lupuius)  fl. 
Poultry  moult 
Dodder  {Cusciita  europaa  seu  epithymuvi 

of  Smith)  fl. 
Lesser  centaury-  {Gentiana   seu   Chiro?iia 

centaiiriiivi  of  Smith')  fl. 
Creeping    water    parsnip     {Sin in    nodiflo- 

ritm)  fl. 
Common  spurrey  {Spergiila  arz'ensis)  fl. 
Wild  clover  (  Trifolimn  pratense)  fl. 
Buckwheat  {Polygonum  ^agopyrutii)  fl. 
Wheat  harvest  begins 

Great  bur-reed  {Sparganium  erect utn)  fl. 
Marsh   St.   John's  wort  {Hypericum  Elo- 

des)  fl. 

228 


WHITE. 

MARKWICK. 

July  12 

July  12 

June  21. 

July  22 

July  13 

June  4. 

July  20 

July  13 

July  13. 

Aug.  II 

Aug.  20 

Sept.  19 

July  13 

June  14 

Aug.  16 

July  14. 

Aug.  4 

June  21. 

Aug.  6 

July  14 

-May  8. 

June  23 

July  14 

June  9. 

Aug.  9 

July  14-29 

July  14. 

Aug.  29 

Aug.  12. 

Sept.  8 

July  14 

June  3. 

July  12 

July  15 

July  15-25 

July  15 

June  22. 

July  13 

July  15 

July  7. 

Aug.  29 

July  16 

July  16. 

Aug.  16 

July  16 

June  12. 

July  18 

July  17. 

Aug.  14 

July  13. 

Aug.  15 

July  17 

July  17- 

Aug.  21 

July  5. 

Aug.  16 

July  17 

June  12. 

July  14 

July  17 

July  17. 

Aug.  7 

July  18. 

Aug.  15 

June  15. 

Aug.  13 

July  18 

July  18 

June  20. 

July  27 

July  18 

July  4. 

Aug.  6 

July  19 

July  13. 

Aug.  14 

July  19 

May  28. 

July  19 

July  19- 

Aug.  10 

Julj'  20. 

Aug.  17 

July  19 

July  20 

July  9- 

Aug.  7 

July  20 

June  3. 

July  19 

July  20 

July  10. 

Sept.  II 

July  21 

Apr.  10. 

July  16 

July  21 

:May  2. 

June  7 

July  21 

Tune  27. 

July  10 

July  21. 

Aug.  23 

July  II. 

Aug.  26 

July  22 

June  10. 

July  23 

July  22- 

31 

June  16 

Aug.  10 

Sun-dew  {Drosera  rottindifoUd)  fl.  1  July  22 

March  cinquefoil  {Comartatt  pahistre)  fl.      1  July  22 
Wild  cherries  ripe  July  22 

Lancashire  asphodel  {AnthericttJti  ossifra-    July  22 

gum)  fl. 
Hooded  willow-herb  {Scrutellaria  galeri-    July  23 

cnlata)  fl. 
Water  dropwort  {CEnanthe  fistulos)  fl. 
Horehound  {Marrubium  vulg.)  fl. 
Seseli  caruifol.  fl. 

Water  plantain  {Alisma  plantago)  fl. 
Alopeciirus  myosuroides  fl. 
Virgin's  bower  {Clejnatis  vitalbd)  fl. 
Bees  kill  the  drones 
Teasel  i^Dipsaciis  sylvestris)  fl. 
Wild  marjoram  {Origamim  viilgare)  fl. 
Swifts  {^Hiriindo  apus)  begin  to  depart 
Small  wild  teasel  {Dipsactts piiosus)  fl. 
Wood  sage  {Teucrium  scorodonid)  fl. 
Everlasting  pea  {Lathyrus  latifolius)  fl. 
Trailing  St.  John's  wort  {Hypericum  hii- 

■mi/tcsuni)  fl. 
White  hellebore  {V'eratrum  albu7ii)  fl. 
Camomile  {A  ntkemis  nobilis)  fl. 
Lesser   field    Scabious  {Scabiosa  columba- 
ria) fl. 
Sunflower  {Helianthus  viultijlorus)  fl. 
Yellow  loosestrife  {Lysimachia  vulgaris)  fl. 
Swift  {Hirundo  apus)  last  seen 
Oats  (A  vena  saliva)  cut 
Barley  {Hordeuvt  saliv7im)  cut 
Lesser    hooded    willow-herb     {Sczilellaria 

minor)  fl. 
Middle  fleabane  {Inula  dysetzlerica)  fl. 
Apis  manicata  ap. 
Swallow-tailed  butterfly  {Papilio  machaon) 

ap. 
Whame  or  burrel  fly  {CEstrus  bovis)  lays 

eggs  on  horses 
Sow  thistle  {Sonchus  arvensis)  fl. 
Plantain  fritillary  {Papilio  cinxia)  ap. 
Yellow  succory  {Picris  hieracioides)  fl. 
Musca  mystacea  ap. 

Canterbury  bells  {Campanula  mediuiii)  fl. 
Mentha  longifol.  fl. 
Carline  thistle  {Carlina  vulgaris)  fl. 
Venetian  sumach  {Rhus  cotinus)  fl. 
Ptinus pectinicornus  ap. 
Burdock  {Arctium  lappa)  fl. 
Fell-wort  {Gentiana  amarella)  fl. 


Aug.  3-19 


Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 


Aug. 

Aug. 

Aug. 

Aug. 

Aug. 

Aug.  8 

Aug,  8.       Sept.  3 


MARKWICK. 

Aug.  I 

May  27.     July  12 

June  21.     July  29 

June  2.     July  31 


July  23 

July  23 

July  24 

July  24 

May  31. 

July  21 

July  25 

July  25.      Aug.  9 

July  13- 

Aug.  14 

July  25 

July  26 

July  16. 

Aug.  3 

July  26 

July  17. 

Aug.  29 

July  27-29 

Aug.  5 

July  28,  29 

July  28 

June  17. 

July  24 

July  28 

June  20, 

July  30 

July  29 

May  20, 

June  22 

July  30 

July  18- 

22 

July  30 

June  21. 

Aug.  20 

July  30 

July  13. 

Aug.  9 

July  31.      Aug.  6 

July  4- 

Aug.  22 

July  31 

July  2. 

Aug.  7 

July  31.      Aug.  27 

Aug.  II 

Aug.  1-16 

July  26. 

Aug.  19 

Aug.  1-26 

July  27. 

Sept.  4 

Aug.  I 

Aug.  8. 

Sept.  7 

Aug.  2 

July  7- 

Aug.  3 

Aug.  2 

Aug.  2 

Apr.  20. 

June  7, 1 

seen  Aug.  28 

June  17.     July  21 

June  6-25 

June  5.     Aug.  11 

July  21.     Aug.  18 
June  5.     July  20 

June  17.     Aug,  4 


229 


Wormwood  (A  rtemisia  absinthium)  fl. 

Mugwort  {Artejuisia  vulgaris)  fl. 

St.  Barnaby's  thistle  {Centaurea  solstit.)  fl. 

Meadow  saffron  {Colchicum  autumnale)^. 

Michaelmas  daisy  {Aster  Tradescanti)  fl. 

Meadow  rue  i^Thalictrum  Jiavum)  fl. 

Sea  holly  {Eryngiutn  marit^  fl. 

China  aster  {Aster  chine nsis)  fl. 

Boletus  albus  ap. 

Less  Venus  looking-glass  {Campanula  hy- 

brida)  fl. 
Carthamus  tinctor.  fl. 
Goldfinch     {Fringilla     carduelis)    young 

broods  ap. 
Lapwings  {Tringa  vanellus')  congregate 
Black-eyed  marble  butterfly  {Papilio  semele) 


WHITE 

Aug.  8 
Aug.  8 
Aug.  ID 
Aug.  ID. 
Aug.  12. 
Aug.  14 
Aug.  14 
Aug.  14. 
Aug.  14 
Aug.  15 

Aug.  15 
Aug.  15 


Aug.  15. 
Aug.  15 


Birds  reassume  their  spring  notes 
Devil's  bit  {Scabiosa  succisa)  fl. 
Thistle  down  floats 
Ploughman's     spikenard    {Co7iyza    sq 

rosa)  fl. 
Autumnal    dandelion   {Leontodon   autum-  \  Aug. 

7iale)  fl. 
Flies  abound  in  windows 
Linnets  {Fringilla  linotd)  congregate 
Bulls  make  their  shrill  autumnal  noise 
Aster  ainellw;  fl. 
Balsam  {Impatiens  balsajnina)  fl. 
Milk  thistle  {Carduus  mariauus)  fl. 
Hop-picking  begins 
Beech  {Fagus  sylvatica)  turns  yellow 
Soapwort  {Saponaria  officitialis)  fl. 
Ladies'  traces  {Ophrys  spiralis)  fl. 
Small  golden  black-spotted  butterfly  (Pa- 

pilio  phlceas)  ap. 
Swallow  {Hirundo  rustica)  sings 
Althcea  frutex  {Hibiscus  syriacus)  fl. 
Great  fritillary  {Papilio paphia)  ap. 
Willow   red    under-wing    moth    {PhalcFua 

pacta)  ap. 
Stone  curlew  {Otis  a>dicnemus)  clamours  Sept 

Phcelana  russula  ap.  Sept. 

Grapes  ripen  Sept. 

Wood  owls  hoot  Sept. 

Saffron  butterfly  {Papilio  hyale)  ap.  Sept. 

Ring  ousel  appears  on  its  autumnal  visit  Sept. 

Flycatcher  {Muscicapa  grisola)  last  seen         Sept. 
Beans,  {Vic ia /aba)  cnt  Sept. 

Ivy  {Hedera  helix)  fl.  Sept. 

230 


Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 


Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 

Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 


Sept.  13 
Sept.  27 


Sept.  28 


Sept. 


Sept. 


18.     Nov. 


Sept.  17 
Sept.  22 

Sept.  12 


29 

30.     Sept.  2 

30 


Nov.  7 


4- 
4 

4-30 
6-29 


Oct.  24 
Nov.  9 


Oct. 


MARKWICK. 
July  22.       Aug.  21 

July  9.     Aug.  ID 

Aug.  15.     Sept.  29 
Aug.  II.     Oct.  8 


Aug.  6.     Oct. 
May  ID 
May  14 


June  15 

Sept.  25.     Feb.  4 

June  22.     Aug.  23 


July  25 


Aug.  22.     Nov. 


May  22.     July  26 
Apr.  21.     July  18 
Sept.  1-15 
Sept.  5-29 
July  19.     Aug.  23 
Aug.  18.     Sept.  18 


Apr.  II.     Aug.  20 
July  20.     Sept.  28 


June  17 

Aug.  31.     Nov.  4 

Aug.  5.     Sept.  26 

Sept.  4-30 
Aug.  9.     Oct.  14 
Sept.  18.     Oct.  28 


Stares  congregate 

Wild  honeysuckles  fl.  a  second  time 

Woodlark  sings 

Woodcock  {Scolopax  rusticold)  returns 


Strawberry  tree  {Arbutus  tinedo)  fl. 

Wheat  sown 

Swallows    last    seen.      (N.  B.     The    house 

martin  the  latest) 
Redwing  {Turdus  iliacus)  comes 


Fieldfare  {Turdus pilaris)  returns 

Gossamer  fills  the  air 

Chinese  holyoak  {A  Icea  rosea)  fl. 

Hen  chaffinches  congregate 

Wood  pigeons  come 

Royston  crow  {Corvus  comix)  returns 

Snipe  {Scolopax  galli)iago)  returns 

Tortoise  begins  to  bury  himself 

Rooks  {Corvus  frugilegus)  return  to  their 

nest  trees 
Bucks  grunt 

Primrose  {Primula  vulgaris)  fl. 
Green  whistling  plover  ap. 
Helve II a  7nitra  ap. 
Greenfinches  flock 
Hepatica  fl. 

Furze  {Ulex  europcetis)  fl. 
Polyanthus  {Prijiiula  polyanthd)  fl. 
Young  lambs  dropped 
Moles  work  in  throwing  up  hillocks 
Helleborus  fostidus  fl. 
Daisy  {Bellis perennis)  fl. 
Wallflower  {Cheiranthus  cheiri  seu  fruti- 

culosus  of  Smith)  fl. 
Mezereon  fl. 


Oct.  25.      Nov.  20 

Oct.  27.      Nov.  20 
Oct.  31.       Dec.  25 


Snowdrop  fl. 


Nov.  I 

Nov.  10 

Oct.  7.    D 

Nov.  13,  14 

Nov.  16 

Nov.  27 

Nov.  30.      Dec.  29 

Feb.  19 

Dec.  4-21 

Dec.  16-31 

Dec.  7-16 

Dec.  31 

Dec.  11-27 

Dec.  12.     1 

Dec.  12-23 

Dec.  14-30 

Dec.  15 

Dec.  26-31 

Dec.  15 

Nov.  5 

Dec.  15 

Dec.  29 

W^HITE. 

MARKWICK. 

Sept.  12. 

Nov. 

I 

June  4.     Mar.  21 

Sept.  25 

Sept.  28. 

Oct. 

24 

Sept.  29. 

Nov. 

II 

Oct.  I.  Nov.  I,  young 
ones  Apr.  28,  last 
seen  Apr.  11 

Oct.  I 

May  21.     Dec.  10 

Oct.  3. 

Nov. 

9 

Sept.  23.     Oct.  19 

Oct.  4. 

Nov. 

5 

Nov.  16 

Oct.  10. 

Nov. 

10 

Oct.  I.  Dec.  18,  sings 
Feb.  ID,  Mar.  21, 
last  seen  Apr.  13 

Oct.  12. 

Nov. 

23 

Oct.    13.       Nov.    18 
last  seen  May  i 

Oct.  15-27 

Oct.  19 

July  7.     Aug.  21 

Oct.  20. 

Dec 

31 

Oct.  23. 

Dec 

27 

Oct.  23. 

Nov 

29 

Oct.    13.      Nov.    17, 

last  seen  Apr.  15 

Sept.    29.      Nov.    I 

last  seen  Apr.  14 

June  29.     Oct.  20 


Dec.  30 


Feb.  21 


IN   SESE  VERTITUR   ANNUS 
231 


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T 


HE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL  IJV  NEW  ENG- 
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